Farmers in Iowa are struggling in Trump’s economy, but many say they still support him

13 farmers across Iowa said they’re struggling economically, but 11 voted for Trump in the past and still largely back him, hoping “he follows through” on his promises.

GALT, Iowa — Two days after President Donald Trump ordered an attack on Iran, Iowa farmer Mark Mueller got a worrying message from a supplier: The price of his fertilizer had jumped from $795 per ton to $850.

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The war had shut down the Strait of Hormuz, disrupting shipments of the fertilizer, which is the biggest expense on Mueller’s corn and soybean farm in northeast Iowa. He hopes one day to pass the asset to his two adult daughters so they will have some “security in their old age.” On March 6, the supplier called again: Now the price was $950 a ton. Two weeks later, the price jumped to $1,050, nearly one-third higher than when the war began.

“Scary,” said Steve Rehder, 62, a family farmer in northwest Iowa, when he was asked to assess the overall farm economy.