Washington Week Ahead: Trump Stumps in Iowa; Another Shutdown Possible

January 26, 2026

Print This Article Share it With Friends

by Kim Chipman, Oliver Ward, Lydia Johnson, and Philip Brasher (Agri-Pulse) President Donald Trump kicks off a series of weekly campaign trips across the U.S. with a visit to Iowa even as the ethanol industry and corn producers are angry about the failure of an E15 provision to move in Congress. In Washington, Trump faces the prospect of another partial government shutdown after a second fatal shooting in Minneapolis involving immigration agents. READ MORE

Related articles

Details for Trump’s Iowa visit next week released (WHO 13)
President Donald Trump to give speech in Clive, Iowa (KCRG)
Clean Fuels Urges President Trump to Quickly Finalize RFS, 45Z Rules (Clean Fuels Alliance America)
Trump heads to Iowa as farm stress and biofuel delays test support (WINCountry/Reuters)
Frustrations rise over ethanol ahead of Trump speech -- A failed effort to get an E15 provision into Congress' funding package left industry groups, farm-state lawmakers and the White House at odds with each other. (Politico Pro)
Ahead of Iowa visit, Trump is pressed to act on biofuel rules (Agri-Pulse)
DTN Ag Policy Blog: As Trump Returns to Iowa, E15 Again Remains a Flashpoint (DTN Progressive Farmer)
Open Letter to President Trump: The Intersection of Economy and Energy in Iowa is E15 (Iowa Corn Growers Association)

Excerpt from WHO 13: More details about President Donald Trump’s visit to Iowa next week have been revealed.

On Thursday night, the Iowa Republican Party provided information on how to secure tickets to the Tuesday, January 27, event in Clive. President Trump is expected to deliver remarks on energy and his economic agenda at the Horizon Events Center at 2100 NW 100th Street. A start time for the event has not been released, but the doors open at noon. READ MORE

Excerpt from Clean Fuels Alliance America: Today (January 26, 2026), Clean Fuels Alliance America sent a letter to President Donald Trump highlighting the biodiesel, renewable diesel and SAF industry’s contribution to U.S. energy security and rural prosperity, as the President embarks on visits across the country to highlight economic conditions. The letter emphasizes that the industry’s continued growth is at risk as farmers and fuel producers await regulatory rules – specifically, the Renewable Fuel Standards for 2026 and 2027 and rules for the Section 45Z Clean Fuel Production Credit – that were due under the prior administration.

“As you visit Iowa this week and other American cities in the coming weeks, Clean Fuels and its members would like to draw your attention to the potential of America’s biodiesel, renewable diesel, and SAF industry,” Clean Fuels writes. “Our industry has made substantial investments to meet America’s demand for energy security and rural economic prosperity.”

“Our progress is threatened by delays in policy decisions that should have been made by the preceding administration. We anticipate that you will quickly finalize these policies and secure your promise as the most pro-biofuel president in history,” the letter continues.

A copy of the letter is available at cleanfuels.org.

Last week, the administration completed interagency review of proposed rules for the 45Z Clean Fuel Production Credit – the final step before public release and a comment period.

Kurt Kovarik, Clean Fuels’ VP of Federal Affairs, added, “The biodiesel, renewable diesel, and SAF industry has proven its ability to meet America’s demand for secure, affordable transportation fuels and to generate jobs and rural economy prosperity. We are hopeful that the administration is close to finalizing long-overdue regulatory rules. The delays and market uncertainty have taken a toll on our industry, undercutting fuel production and the value added to agriculture. As President Trump embarks on his economic tour, we invite him to visit biodiesel and renewable diesel producers to witness first-hand how policy decisiveness supports our resurgence.”

ABOUT CLEAN FUELS ALLIANCE AMERICA

Made from an increasingly diverse mix of resources such as recycled cooking oil, soybean oil, and animal fats, the clean fuels industry is a proven, integral part of America’s clean energy future. Clean Fuels Alliance America is the U.S. trade association representing the entire biodiesel, renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel supply chain, including producers, feedstock suppliers and fuel distributors. Clean Fuels receives funding from a broad mix of private companies and associations, including the United Soybean Board and state checkoff organizations. READ MORE

Excerpt from WINCountry/Reuters: Lance Lillibridge, a 56-year-old corn and cattle farmer, said he plans to make the two-hour drive from his farm in Vinton to the Des Moines area to see Trump. Like many farmers, he said he has been hit hard by the trade war with China and rising costs of seeds and fertilizer, and he hopes the administration will pursue another ‌multibillion-dollar farm bailout.

“There’s going to have to be something because right now everything’s just terrible. ‌I’ve never been so cash poor in my entire life,” Lillibridge said, describing himself as a Trump supporter “for the most part.”

The Iowa stop comes as the White House manages a crisis in neighboring Minnesota after federal immigration agents shot and killed 37-year-old U.S. citizen Alex Pretti during a protest in Minneapolis, sparking widespread demonstrations and calls for independent investigations.

Trump is expected to emphasize his administration’s support for agriculture and renewable fuels, while casting his broader economic agenda as a push to make food, fuel and household goods more affordable, according to administration officials.

Scott Irwin, an agricultural economist at the University of Illinois, said while Trump’s ‍trade policies have hurt crop farmers, the administration has eased regulations and kept fuel prices lower to maintain support.

“I think as long as Trump and a Republican Congress are willing to backfill a significant amount of crop losses with special programs, his support will remain solid,” Irwin said.

A Reuters/Ipsos ‍poll that closed on Sunday showed that 30% of Americans approve of Trump’s handling of the rising cost of living, while 59% disapproved, including nine in 10 Democrats and one in five Republicans.

Strain in the U.S. farm economy has been mushrooming, from unsold tractors to agribusiness companies reporting shrinking earnings. Abundant grain supplies have weighed on markets, while production costs remain high, leaving crop prices weak for a third straight year.

Delays in biofuel policy have compounded the pressure. The administration has ‍delayed final biofuel-blending quotas for 2026. The quotas are known as renewable volume obligations, or RVOs.

It has also not finalized tax guidance for renewable-fuel credits known as 45Z, and efforts have stalled on a long-standing priority for corn growers: securing congressional approval ‍for year-round sales of gasoline blended with ‍15% ethanol.

“Without nationwide, year-round E15, many of us are now going to continue relying on government payments to stay afloat,” Mark Mueller, president of the Iowa Corn Growers Association, said in a ⁠statement.

Those delays have hit Iowa’s biodiesel industry particularly hard. Iowa’s biodiesel plants produced 244 ‌million gallons in 2025, down 31% from 2024, the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association said. At full capacity, the state’s plants can produce more than 400 million gallons a year. READ MORE

Excerpt from Politico Pro: Still, the failed (E15) effort left lobbyists feeling betrayed by the White House and farm-state lawmakers feeling frustrated with a key agriculture industry group, according to three people granted anonymity to discuss behind-the-scenes conversations.

The National Corn Growers Association rankled Midwestern Republicans on Wednesday when it dismissed the effectiveness of the new ethanol working group.

“Corn growers are disgusted, disappointed and disillusioned that after spending years of calling for passage of E15, Congress has again punted, and it has done so in a spectacularly weak and offensive way,” said NCGA President Jed Bower. READ MORE

Excerpt from Iowa Corn Growers Association: Full-Page Ad in Tuesday Des Moines Register Will Highlight the Push for Nationwide, Year-Round E15

Iowa Corn and Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) today released an open letter thanking President Trump for his constant support of nationwide, year-round E15 and asking for his help to finally push E15 access through Congress. Despite strong support from Iowa and Midwestern representatives, the U.S. House failed to include E15 in recent spending bills, opting to create a task force instead. The deadline for task force action is February 28.

The letter states: “Congress has appointed a task force, co-chaired by Iowa’s Rep. Randy Feenstra, to consider the critical need for nationwide, year-round E15 with a vote scheduled for the end of February. Without permanent access to this market, the long-term viability of our state’s largest economic driver is at serious risk. Today, we are asking for your help to finally push E15 access through Congress.”

America’s corn farmers are struggling and often sell corn well below the cost of production. As a result, the entire Iowa economy struggles. In fact, the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank just listed Iowa as 50th in terms of economic growth. The best way to boost corn prices and create meaningful market demand is the immediate authorization of nationwide, year-round E15.

The letter continued: “Removing the outdated regulatory hurdle for E15 is exactly the type of government efficiency you’ve worked for. We urgently seek your ongoing assistance as Congress debates E15 over the next month. Permanent nationwide access to E15 is a common-sense, no-cost solution to strengthen American energy dominance and provide a vital lifeline to Iowa’s growers. We look forward to your continued leadership on this issue and remain ready to work alongside you to move this critical policy across the finish line. Now is the time.”

To push the E15 message, Iowa Corn and IRFA took out a full-page ad in the Tuesday edition of the Des Moines Register. You can view the ad here.

The complete open letter is available here. READ MORE

Excerpt from DTN Progressive Farmer: Separately, the American Soybean Association on Monday also raised concerns about the rural energy council and the scope of work for the ad-hoc congressional group.

"The American Soybean Association appreciates the continued work of the House of Representatives to champion domestic biofuel production, but the broad latitude provided to the E15 Rural Domestic Energy Council creates new threats to programs U.S. soybean farmers rely on to advance the production of soy-based fuels," said Ohio farmer Scott Metzger, ASA's president. "ASA supports the sale of year-round E15 but is concerned about the Council's review of longstanding bipartisan policies that promote the production and consumption of biodiesel, renewable diesel, and other biofuels derived from soybeans. Congress and members of the Council must guard against all efforts that seek to weaken the Renewable Fuel Standard and other policies U.S. soybean farmers rely on for domestic market demand. The open-ended directives of this Council create a dangerous precedent that threatens the foundation of the U.S. biofuel industry. The Council should not open 25 years of RFS program success during only a few weeks of review."

ASA praised the Trump administration's 2026-27 Renewable Volume Obligations draft rule and the 45Z Clean Fuel Production Credit. Still, ASA added, "Instead of studying biofuel policies with longstanding proven success, Congress should be working with the administration to ensure the swift finalization of 45Z tax guidance, robust RVOs, and finalizing EPA's proposed rule to give preference to domestic feedstocks and fuels. The work of the E15 Rural Domestic Energy Council cannot distract from getting these policies across the finish line." READ MORE