Trump's Reignited Trade War Squeezes Florida Oranges and Adam Putnam Does Nothing

Donald Trump’s trade war — which Adam Putnam has spent months cheerleading — is about to result in massive tariffs for Florida orange juice.

In retaliation to Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminum, the Canadian government is set to impose 10 percent tax on orange juice from the United States. The Canadian tariffs are likely just the beginning: the European Union is also poised to place tariffs on orange juice.

Those measures will damage the state’s already struggling citrus industry and have already been condemned by other Republicans. Four Republican Congressmen from Florida wrote to Trump denouncing the tariffs in March. And just yesterday, Republican Congressman Dave Reichert — who served in Congress with Putnam — said Trump’s trade actions will cause American agriculture to lose market share and force “fruits, vegetables, and other agriculture products to rot” across the country.

Despite the obvious negative impact it will have on Florida, Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam has been a fervent supporter of Trump’s trade war.

It’s a bizarre position for the state’s Agriculture Commissioner to take. One of Putnam’s sole responsibilities is to stand up for the state’s agriculture industry. Yet for more than a year, Putnam has put his campaign for governor above all official duties. Florida’s Republican gubernatorial primary has become a contest about “who’s the Trumpiest,” as the News Service of Florida’s Dara Kam put it, with both Putnam and DeSantis eagerly showing their fealty to Donald Trump, even when his policies harm Florida.

“Adam Putnam is the ultimate Donald Trump sellout. From trade to health care, Adam Putnam has consistently put Donald Trump first, even when the President’s policies have hurt Floridians. In his desperate bid to out-Trump Ron Desantis, Putnam is endorsing Trump’s destructive trade war and selling out the state’s beleaguered citrus industry,” said FDP spokesperson Kevin Donohoe.