Trump Unveils $8 Billion Diesel Relief for Farmers at Kansas Rally, Draws Fire for Antisemitic Slur Defending Marshall

PARK CITY, Kan., Oct. 19 (TodayViralUSA) — President Donald Trump used a campaign rally outside Wichita on Monday night to announce an $8 billion federal program to help farmers cover soaring diesel costs, while defending embattled Sen. Roger Marshall with an antisemitic slur that quickly overshadowed parts of the event.

The rally at Heartland Credit Union Arena was Trump’s first visit to Kansas since 2018, and the first by a sitting president to the Wichita area in 20 years. It came 15 days before the Nov. 3 midterm elections, as Marshall fights an unexpectedly close re-election race in a state that has not sent a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since 1932.

‘Harvest Fuel Relief’

“Tonight, I’m also pleased to announce that the Department of Agriculture will be launching a new Harvest Fuel Relief Program providing our farmers with $8 billion in support to offset diesel costs during this harvest season,” Trump told the crowd, crediting Marshall with pushing for the money. He described the announcement as “some more goodies,” the Wichita Eagle reported, and repeated his promise of $5,000 for every adult if Republicans keep control of Congress.

Diesel prices have surged since the U.S. war with Iran began in late February, climbing from about $3.70 a gallon before the conflict to roughly $6.23 at the peak of harvest, according to the Eagle. In Kansas, prices have topped $6 a gallon in recent weeks.

In a release issued shortly after the speech, the USDA said the one-time payments will use a uniform formula to cover a portion of modeled losses in the 2026 crop year, based on planted acres, cost-of-production estimates and federal yield and price forecasts. The payments are authorized under the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act and will be administered by the Farm Service Agency. Payment rates for major commodities will be released in November; the application period and payment dates have not been announced. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, who attended the rally, called Trump “the most pro-farmer president of my lifetime.”

Slur draws criticism

Defending Marshall against reports that he sued hundreds of patients over unpaid medical bills while practicing as a physician, Trump said the coverage portrayed the senator, who is not Jewish, as “some kind of a shylock-type guy,” NBC News reported. The term is widely recognized as an antisemitic slur. Trump used the same word last year while promoting his domestic policy bill, drawing condemnation from Jewish groups at the time. The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Monday’s remarks.

Trump also blamed a judge and state law, not Marshall, for arrests of some patients who owed the senator money. “He didn’t do it,” Trump said, according to the Kansas Reflector.

A tight race in a red state

Marshall faces Democrat Adam Hamilton, the pastor of a large Kansas City-area United Methodist church, along with Libertarian David Graham. The Cook Political Report rates the contest a toss-up. Trump called Hamilton a “disgrace” and a “lunatic” who is “pretending to be a moderate,” while protesters interrupted the president several times during his roughly hour-and-40-minute speech.

Hamilton’s campaign said the visit showed Republicans were worried. “Nothing said at the rally can distract from the fact Kansans are being crushed by rising gas and diesel prices,” spokesperson Tyson Brody said. Hamilton has proposed suspending federal gas and diesel taxes until the Iran conflict ends. Marshall and Hamilton are scheduled to debate on television Wednesday.

Trump also offered sympathy to the victims of Saturday’s crash at a Wichita youth soccer complex, which killed a 6-year-old boy and a man, and said federal help was available to investigators.