President Trump talked up the ways tax cuts and deregulation will help farmers, telling the audience at the American Farm Bureau Federation's annual convention on Monday that the tax bill he helped shepherd through Congress last year will help them earn and keep more money.
"Oh, are you happy that you voted for me," Trump said during the agriculture event in Nashville, Tenn. on Monday. "The other choice wasn't going to work too well for the farmers."
"From now on, most family farms and small business owners will be spared the punishment of the deeply unfair estate, known as the death tax— so you can keep your farms in the family," Trump said. "That was a tough one to get."
Trump highlighted provisions of the tax law that will change the way farmers write off purchases of new equipment.
"All American businesses, including American farmers, will be able to deduct 100% of the cost of new equipment in the year you make the investment," Trump said.
The president admonished Democrats for attempting to block the tax bill as it worked its way through Congress last year. Republicans used a procedural tool known as reconciliation to pass the bill on a party-line vote in the Senate.
"Every Democrat in the House and every Democrat in the Senate voted against tax cuts for the American farmer and for the American worker," Trump said.
The president cited the work his rural task force has completed in previous months, including its exploration of the need to expand broadband access in rural communities.
Trump said he would soon sign an executive order and a presidential memorandum aimed at stimulating investment in rural broadband expansion.
"Make sure you look up @realdonaldtrump," Trump told the crowd of farmers, referring to his Twitter username. "It's the only way around the media. Fake media."
In his wide-ranging speech, Trump hinted at his upcoming push for an infrastructure package, his administration's focus on ending the opioid epidemic and his plans to build a wall along the Southern border.
The president also referenced his feud with athletes who protested police brutality by kneeling during the national anthem at sporting events, most notably NFL games.
"We want out flag respected and we want out national anthem respected also," Trump told the crowd of farmers, who responded warmly to the reference. "There's plenty of space for people to express their views and to protest, but we love our flag and we love our anthem and we want to keep it that way."
