Oppose the Protection of Pesticide Manufacturing

On February 18th, Donald Trump signed an executive order to increase the national production of the chemical glyphosate, a key ingredient in weedkillers like Roundup that has been continually linked to an increased risk of cancer. Trump claims the production of this carcinogenic herbicide is “crucial to the national security and defense”, but the most critical effect of this order is that it gives legal immunity to chemical manufacturers for any adverse effects of these chemicals, leading some environmentalists to see this ruling as “a sickening love letter from Trump to the largest pesticide companies in the world”.

In 2015, experts from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) reviewed about 1,000 independent and credible studies and concluded that glyphosate and its formulations can be classified as Group 2A substances, meaning they are “probably carcinogenic to humans”. Subsequent research has continued to provide evidence that supports this finding, and various scientific bodies warn against the use of glyphosate in the farms that supply our food, despite pesticide companies’ push back against these objective conclusions. Trump’s order to produce more glyphosate and shield chemical companies from liability has been met with bipartisan outrage, notably from the “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) proponents of his own base. The day after this executive order was signed, Kentucky GOP Rep. Thomas Massie proposed the “No Immunity for Glyphosate Act” to undo Trump’s order, and both Democrats and Republicans have signed on to co-sponsor the bill.

This executive order comes at a time when companies like Bayer—the producer of Roundup—are facing increased litigation and public scrutiny, making Trump’s already flimsy and tangential national defense justification even more dubious. While it is unclear how involved Bayer was in the drafting of this executive order, the company has recently been using various tactics to prevent litigation against them, including lobbying state legislators, the Department of Agriculture, and even the Supreme Court to avoid accountability for the harmful effects of their products.

Trump’s executive order not only puts the health of Americans at risk but also lays the groundwork for other big companies to do so with impunity. Call your representatives and tell them to oppose this executive order.