'A slap in the face': Ranchers feel betrayed by Trump's plan to buy Argentine beef

""It feels like a slap in the face to rural America,""

""It makes you feel invisible and overlooked.""

""Argentina is fighting for its life.""

""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,""

Destinee Weeks and her husband manage about 250 cattle in northern Oklahoma and saw a profit this year for the first time in a decade. Beef prices in the U.S. have soared because of a shrunken cattle supply. President Trump suggested buying beef from Argentina to help lower costs and agreed to a $20 billion currency swap to boost Argentina's struggling economy. Ranchers and agricultural groups quickly opposed increased imports, arguing the move would hurt domestic producers. The White House confirmed plans to quadruple the tariff-rate quota for beef from Argentina while the USDA announced an action plan to support domestic cattle ranchers. The United States Cattlemen's Association called the USDA initiative positive but remained deeply concerned that a large deal with Argentina would undercut the foundation of the cattle industry.

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