Here's why Freedom Caucus Republicans helped Democrats defeat Trump's farm bill

Freedom Caucus members of the House of Representatives joined with Democrats to hand President Trump and the GOP establishment a defeat on their Farm Bill Friday.

Here's why they did it

Freedom Caucus members were demanding a vote on immigration legislation and said that they were not assured enough by the GOP leadership that they would get it.

213 members of Congress voted against the bill while 198 voted for it, with 30 Republicans voting against the bill.

Additionally, they argued that there was still time to pass the farm bill, but that it was urgent to pass something on immigration.

"I would say that the farm bill doesn't expire until September," said Freedom Caucus member Rep. Scotty Perry (R-Penn.) on Fox News.

"We have plenty of time to do the farm bill," he added, "so it's more important right now to prioritize immigration, and we've been asking and waiting four months.

"The farm bill was a casualty”

“You’re asked to put up a vote now for a promise in the future that is somewhat vague, and unfortunately too many of our members have been left standing at the altar,” he explained. “It’s all about timing unfortunately, and leverage, and I think the farm bill was a casualty.”

The farm bill would have strengthened work and job training requirements for able-bodied persons on food stamps.

The White House said that Trump was disappointed in the failure of Congressional Republicans to pass the bill.

“President Donald J. Trump is disappointed in the result of today’s vote in the House of Representatives on the Farm bill, and hopes the House can resolve any remaining issues in order to achieve strong work requirements and support our Nation’s agricultural community,” said White House deputy press secretary Lindsay Walters in a statement.

“The Administration underscores the need to bring certainty to our farmers and ranchers and to the many Americans receiving food assistance, and will continue to work with Congress to pass a Farm bill on time," the statement concluded.

Here's the Fox News video report on the bill failure: