Jim Justice

Tribes aim to expand Indigenous agriculture and preserve heritage crops through the Farm Bill, but face challenges as federal programs supporting tribal farmers were cut under the Trump administration. The Biden administration launched programs like LFPA and LFS to help local food purchases, which were later terminated in 2025. Senators Jack Reed and Jim Justice introduced a bill to create a permanent grant program for local food purchases by tribes and states.

Tribes in southwest Rhode Island, including Dawn and Cassius Spears of Ashawaug Farm, cultivate Narragansett heritage crops but face challenges expanding due to cuts in USDA programs under the Trump administration. The Biden administration introduced two pandemic-era programs (LFPA and LFS) to support tribal and local food purchases, but these were ended in 2025 under the Trump administration. Senators Jack Reed and Jim Justice proposed a new bill to create a permanent grant program for state and tribal food purchases.

Indigenous farmers like Dawn and Cassius Spears at Ashawaug Farm rely on federal programs to cultivate and distribute culturally significant crops, but Trump-era cuts to USDA programs have limited their reach. The Biden administration established two pandemic-era programs to help tribes and states purchase local food, but these were terminated in 2025 under the Trump administration. Senators Jack Reed and Jim Justice introduced a bill to create a permanent grant program for local food purchases by tribes and states.

President Donald Trump expressed frustration with Senate Republicans during a closed-door lunch, criticizing lawmakers who opposed his positions on the Iran war and a controversial elections bill. Trump refused to sign a bipartisan housing bill, escalating tensions with GOP senators who described the meeting as intense and contentious.

The author resides in Saint Marie, Montana, a declining town once linked to a decommissioned military base, and highlights a new bipartisan bill to expand farm credit institution lending in rural areas. The article critiques the rural housing crisis, noting that post-pandemic remote work has driven up home prices, displacing longtime residents.

The Trump administration halted a federal criminal investigation into coal companies owned by GOP Senator Jim Justice. The probe examined potential Clean Water Act violations by mining operations controlled by Justice's son. Prosecutors had initially been supported but were later instructed to cease the investigation.