Republican Senators are unhappy about Donald Trump’s policy proposal to import beef from Argentina. But they are not quite ready to grill him on it yet.
Trump took a swipe at cattle ranchers on Wednesday on Truth Social, as many Republicans have expressed concerns about the White House’s proposal to import beef from the South American country.
“The Cattle Ranchers, who I love, don’t understand that the only reason they are doing so well, for the first time in decades, is because I put Tariffs on cattle coming into the United States, including a 50% Tariff on Brazil,” he said. “If it weren’t for me, they would be doing just as they’ve done for the past 20 years — Terrible! It would be nice if they would understand that, but they also have to get their prices down, because the consumer is a very big factor in my thinking, also!”
Trump’s proposal on Argentina comes as the administration has put in place a $20 billion bailout for the beleaguered country run by his ally, President Javier Milei.
The move rankled farmers and ranchers, including in many states that voted for Trump. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association criticized the efforts by Trump.
“Efforts to manipulate markets only risk damaging the livelihoods of American cattlemen and women, while doing little to impact the price consumers are paying at the grocery store,” the NCBA said in a statement.
According to the NCBA, Texas, Nebraska, Kansas and Oklahoma, all of which voted for Trump by large margins in 2024, produce the most cattle.
But Cruz, who famously ran against Trump in 2016 when Trump posted an image calling Cruz’s wife ugly, deferred when asked about Trump’s policies toward cattle ranchers.
“I love Texas ranchers, Texas is the national powerhouse when it comes to cattle ranching, and I’m confident Texas will continue to lead the way,” Cruz, the chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, told The Independent. When asked about Trump, he said, “He can speak for himself.”
Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kansas) also stopped short of criticizing Trump.
“I think that they realize that this is a very, very small amount of beef that would come in from Argentina, and they’re probably more concerned about how much of the profit the packers are taking on this,” he told The Independent.
Marshall said that cattle ranchers are worried about who is making money on beef when they make so little and screwworm in beef coming from Mexico, which limits the supply of beef in the United States.
“And because of that drop of imports from Mexico, we don’t have enough hamburgers in this country as well,” Marshall said. “So I think they understand that this is just a small blip on the screen.”
But Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) said in a statement on X that she had contacted the administration about its policy on beef.
“Bottom line: if the goal is addressing beef prices at the grocery store, this isn’t the way,” she said. “Right now, government intervention in the beef market will hurt our cattle ranchers. The U.S. has safe, reliable beef, and it is the one bright spot in our struggling ag economy. Nebraska’s ranchers cannot afford to have the rug pulled out from under them when they’re just getting ahead or simply breaking even.”
Republican senators face a major conundrum, considering that many cattle ranchers and rural states ardently support Trump, but their livelihoods are endangered.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass), for her part, criticized Trump’s beef policy.
Warren, the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, has long spoken out against the bailout for Argentina.
“President Trump dumps on American farmers to help Argentina, and now he plans to dump on American ranchers,” she told The Independent. “What happened to America First? It appears to be ‘Argentina First’ over at the White House.”
Milei and Trump have become incredibly close in recent years. Milei’s libertarian style of slashing government services served as an inspiration from Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency.
But Argentina continues to face major economic headwinds and the country will hold legislative elections this Sunday.
