Don’t Hurt You, Don’t Hurt Me...

...hurt that Mexican behind the tree!

That's my variation on a short verse about taxes ("Don't tax you, don't tax me, tax that fellow behind the tree!") attributed to the late Louisiana Senator Russell Long. 

It's also the FA portion of FAFO that Republican voters were only too happy to sign up for when they nominated Trump to be their Dear Leader three times, voted for him three times, and elected him twice.

And now... (from our friends at Crooks & Liars, February 21, 2026):

Farm Bankruptcies Jump In 2025, More To Come In 2026

Farm bankruptcies across the nation have jumped 46% in 2025. You'll never guess why.

A report from the American Farm Bureau Federation shows that farm bankruptcies jumped by 46% across the nation. In Wisconsin alone, there were only 2 bankruptcy filings each in 2023 and 2024. But in 2025, that number leapt up to sixteen filings.

The reasons for this massive increase in bankruptcies should not be a surprise to anyone. They include lost markets due to Trump's illegal tariffs and ballooning costs due to Trumpflation. Everything a farm needs to operate jumped in cost, but farmers weren't getting nearly enough back to meet their costs.

Another factor adding to the farmers' woes was the labor issue. With fewer migrant workers, labor costs rose, squeezing farmers even more.

In Trump's first term, his tariffs and his war on immigrants caused Wisconsin dairy farms to close at a rate of two per day. To do the same thing and expect different results is the definition of insanity - or in Trump's case, dementia.

Unsurprisingly, experts are warning that 2026 is going to be more of the same, only worse.

In keeping with our farming theme, that is what the fruit of the poison tree looks like.

As does this.  From The Daily Beast,  February. 23 2026:

Trump Supporter Learns Hard Way ICE Doesn’t Just Target ‘Worst of the Worst’

A New Jersey couple can’t believe “we were MAGA” after their immigration ordeal.

A Donald Trump supporter is regretting voting for the president after her husband was swept up in the administration’s immigration clampdown.

Sandra Hafraoui’s husband, Abdellatif Hafraoui, spent 108 days in custody after being detained by ICE at Newark Liberty International Airport as the couple attempted to fly out on vacation.

Abdellatif, a Moroccan national who has lived in the U.S. for nearly 40 years, was detained despite having no criminal record. He was caught up in the crackdown because of a missed immigration court date more than a decade ago that he was not even aware he was scheduled to attend, NJ.com reported.

Sandra, who voted for Trump in the last three elections, said she is now reconsidering her MAGA allegiance and the president’s mass deportation plans due to the treatment her husband endured.

“To think we were MAGA!” she told NJ.com. “You [Trump] said you were going after the worst of the worst, but instead you ruined our life.”...

And if these are the poison fruits, this is the seedbed where the poison plant was rooted, watered, fertilized and allowed to grow big and strong.

From Investigate Midwest, November 13, 2024

Trump support grew in America’s top farming counties despite first-term trade war 

Farming-dependent counties rallied behind Trump with an average of nearly 78% support.

America’s most farming-dependent counties overwhelmingly backed President-elect Donald Trump in [2024's] election by an average of 77.7%. 

Trump has appeared on three presidential ballots, beginning in 2016. In 2020 and 2024, he increased his support nationwide, topping 50% in this year’s popular vote. 

However, Trump also increased his support this year among farming-dependent counties by nearly two percentage points compared to 2020...

Fuck 'em. 

And now, an unfairly out-of-context bit of audio for your listening pleasure:

Burn The Lifeboats