Musk’s tactics are hurting those who live off that land—the farmers

It’s a time of uncertainty in the heartland as agricultural programs are cut. “It’s very unsettling and very stressful.”

By Marcus Baram, for Capital & Main

“It’s very unsettling and very stressful,” said Ben Palen over the phone while driving his truck in rural Kansas. He’s a fifth-generation farmer whose family has been working the land since 1855. And he’s alarmed by the Trump administration’s recent cuts to programs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Agency for International Development.