Statement by Vice President Joe Biden on Need to Stand with Farmers and Biofuel Producers After Donald Trump's Latest Insult to Ethanol Industry

America has an obligation to uphold our promises to farmers and producers — but from illegally granted small refinery waivers to ill-advised trade wars, Donald Trump has launched a full-on assault on the ethanol industry. Nearly a year after reneging on his promise to restore the billions of ethanol gallons producers lost to Big Oil waivers, Trump has sat idly by as courts have ruled his Administration's actions unlawful, and farmers who lost demand for one billion bushels of corn have watched prices collapse and markets dissipate.

Let's be clear: We know that at a moment's notice, Donald Trump could have made explicit his imperative to stand with American farmers by reversing harmful waivers and setting strong levels for 2021. Instead, he chose to side with Wall Street and Big Oil — personally intervening to grant major oil refineries waivers last year. That's why Trump announced today that he will merely grant some but not all previous gap-year waivers. Failing to address waivers for this year or last year isn't a win for our farmers — it adds further insult to injury. And it's a standard that ought to be unacceptable. Lip service 50 days before an election won't make up for nearly four years of retroactive damage that's decimated our trade economy and forced ethanol plants to shutter. We can — and we must — do better. A Biden-Harris Administration will fight for family farmers and revitalize rural economies — from keeping our promises to farmers by ushering in a new era of biofuels, to investing in the broadband infrastructure and rural health care access that families and communities need.