A rural Ohio farmer who quit the Republican Party over Trump’s tariffs announced that he is running to unseat Trump ally Rep. Jim Jordan, The Toledo Blade reports.
Chris Gibbs, a 61-year-old grain and cattle farmer who voted for Trump but then quit the GOP over Trump’s trade war with China, plans to formally announce his bid on Wednesday.
Gibbs rose to prominence after numerous appearances on CNN and CNBC about the damage Trump’s tariffs have had on his farming business.
Gibbs said his soybeans lost 20 percent of their value as a result of the trade war and that other farmers have faced similar problems.
“Tariffs for agriculture have been devastating,” Gibbs said. “In northwest Ohio, [farmers] have had a heck of a time.”
Gibbs resigned as GOP chairman:
Gibbs resigned as the chairman of the local Republican Party and said he does not see himself as aligned with either party.
“People are tired of the vitriol in Washington, on both sides,” Gibbs said. “It isn’t just Jim Jordan. It’s the vitriol back and forth and the lack of ability to roll up your sleeves and get something done for the American people.”
“I never anticipated that the Republicans in Congress would wilt in their responsibility to their oath and serve the President over serving their districts,” he added.
Gibbs faces tough challenge:
The Toledo Blade described running against Jordan as a “nearly-impossible battle,” noting that he is the biggest fundraiser among Ohio’s congress members and won his last election in a landslide.
In Shelby County, where Gibbs lives, nearly 80 percent of voters backed Trump and nearly 70 percent voted for Jordan.
“What they don’t realize is that farmers are the prism through which rural communities thrive,” Gibbs said. “We hold kryptonite to this President in our shirt pockets. And what is it? It’s our vote. Because he knows if he loses that agriculture support, he loses rural communities. And if he loses the rural communities, he loses Wisconsin, he loses Michigan, and he loses western Pennsylvania, and he gets nibbled at in Ohio.”
