When it comes to global relations, farmers are in the middle of a tug-of-war between China and the United States. And while much of agriculture and flyover states supported President Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election, patience is waning for producers.

In addition to living with great uncertainty during these trade disputes, many farmers have already been feeling the pain from depressed commodity prices, increased capital risk, greater debt loads, and bleeding-red balance sheets.

As a nation, we are enjoying an economic boom, with growing wages, business investments up, personal income climbing, job opportunities soaring, and an unemployment rate at the lowest level we’ve seen in the last 50 years. However, farm and ranch country – who largely elected Trump to office – is hurting.

“While the broader national economy is strong, just imagine how much stronger it could be if agriculture – the lifeblood of the heartland – was on the same track,” said U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) in a press release. “Unfortunately, it’s been bogged down by protracted trade disputes that have left farmers and ranchers in their wake.

“Folks in the agriculture community are growing more frustrated, and I relay their concerns to the President and members of his administration nearly every time I see them. Like many farmers and ranchers, I too support the President’s goal of addressing trade imbalances, but I believe it’s time to wrap up negotiations, open up markets, and give these family-run operations the certainty and security they deserve.”

Perhaps a Band-Aid on a bullet wound, the Trump administration is working on a second round of assistance for producers, with as much as $20 billion earmarked for trade aid. Yet despite the promised relief, producers are saying they want fair trade – not aid.

A statement from the National Corn Growers Assoc. last week highlights the frustrations felt by those in the Corn Belt: “The recent announcement that the Trump administration is increasing the tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods, and China’s retaliatory tariffs, could not have come at a worse time for corn farmers, bringing more uncertainty to markets and impacting commodity prices.

“In an effort to ease this impact, the administration is now pursuing a second round of trade assistance for agriculture, with the intent of making an announcement in the next few days. As you’ll recall, the previous Market Facilitation Program (MFP) payment rate for corn farmers was just 1 cent per bushel.

“Please tell the President that a penny didn’t cut it then and won’t cut it now. On top of trade disputes and tariffs, EPA granting RFS (Renewable Fuel Standard) waivers to oil refiners, devastating weather conditions, farm incomes on a downward trend, and crumbling infrastructure have all created a perfect storm for agriculture.

“Tell the President that one penny won’t provide the market certainty that farmers need to stay afloat during these challenging times.”

Yet, even with the shared frustrations and waning patience, many will continue to back Trump, because, really – what is the alternative? Even as some give up hope, others contend the fight has just begun. And if they can weather the pain of this trade war, there’s hope that it will be better for all on the other side of it.

“The best way to end a trade war is to win it. To win it, we must stay unified in the fight against our adversary,” said Republican North Dakota Sen. Kevin Cramer, in a statement to CNBC.

“China’s bad-faith negotiation style is as predictable as sunrise in the morning, and doing things the same old way will not work any better today than they have before. I stand with President Trump as he uses the strongest weapons in his arsenal.”

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments for Amanda Radke may write to her in care of this publication.