US government pays-off Brazilian Cotton Farmers so they don't complain about subsidies the US govt pays to wealthy US farmers. Got that? See here how much...

Your government at work.  This is how easy it is to spend other peoples money.

In order to keep Brazil from retaliating with trade sanctions over subsidies to US cotton farmers,  the US Dept of Agriculture paid them $174 million dollars to, well, not do that.

From NPR:

Why U.S. Taxpayers Started — And Stopped — Paying Brazilian Cotton Farmers

When he says "the rules," he means the rules of the World Trade Organization, which govern global trade. Back in 2002, Camargo went to the WTO with his complaint, arguing that the U.S. was illegally subsidizing its cotton farmers. He won. The U.S. appealed the decision, and lost again.

As the fight went on, Brazil threatened to retaliate with trade sanctions if the U.S. didn't stop subsidizing cotton.

And finally, in 2010, U.S. representatives made Brazil an unusual offer. They said: The subsidies to U.S. cotton farmers are part of U.S. law, and will continue for as long as the current Farm Bill is in place. So, the negotiators said, until the next Farm Bill passes, the U.S. will pay Brazilian cotton farmers $147 million a year.

"For Brazilian farmers, it's a lot of money," Camargo says. The Brazilians took the deal. And, every month, the U.S. sent over $12 million to Haroldo Cunha, president of the Brazilian Cotton Institute.