The farmers. I have relatives who farm in Oklahoma and Arkansas who thought Musk was on their side last year, and you can tell that it’s finally sinking in that they could be fucked by what Leon is trying to do, and with the tariffs that will probably happen. Friends who farm in Texas, who were opposed to Musk getting anywhere near D.C. have been preparing since it was clear that tariffs would happen, and the USAID fuckery kicked their plans into high gear.
We tend to picture farmers as being insular good ole boys, but they use the internet, follow various sites, are emailing each other on mailing lists, are talking to their Congressional reps (and apparently being ignored, at least in Oklahoma) and more importantly, they are talking to the co-ops and companies who are buying from them, and talking to the companies they buy from (fertilizer, equipment, etc.) as well as their banks and everything else farmers deal with.
My friends in Texas didn’t vote for Musk and are assuming the worst and trying to line up deals and purchases much earlier than they normally would. Some of them sell within the state (thanks HEB!) or are lining up buyers that may not be as good, but don’t cross the Mexican border. My family in Oklahoma and Arkansas did vote for Musk and they believe they have a slight chance at getting exemptions with the tariffs and USAID (they don’t) but you can tell they are concerned.
What my relatives don’t understand is that Musk does not see USAID as a decent org that helps take agricultural surplus off the market and keep a lot of farms afloat (which is actually a matter of national security). He simply sees it as an org that is investigating one of his companies and he wants it destroyed. He has never farmed and doesn’t understand how many farms could go under.
Musk not only doesn’t understand it’s a localized natural security issue (keeping American farms going and growing) but he doesn’t see how many countries are helped out by us sending food overseas as well as what would happen if the tariffs kick in. If we limit cheap American food going elsewhere, besides hurting American farmers, other countries might step in to cover the more profitable areas. We also increase the chances of refugees from those countries heading north. And keeping those countries nominally stable keeps them open for American investments and influence (versus Russian or Chinese or Indian investments).
TLDR: Musk will happily drive a lot of American farms under if he can help out his companies.