Less than three weeks ago, the US Senate passed the relief package to help people deal with the virus unanimously. EVERY SINGLE senator both Republican and Democrat voted for it. A big chunk of that act was the Paycheck Protection Program. That provides loans to businesses with fewer than 500 employees so that they can keep those employees on the payroll. To the extent that the money is used to pay those wages, the loan does not have to be paid back. The cash goes from the government to the businesses to the employees. It avoids people having to deal with unemployment offices. It also makes sure that employees keep their health and other benefits. It's a great way to make sure that Americans who have had to stay home instead of working are protected during the outbreak.
The Paycheck Protection Program has proven to be extremely popular. The original amount put into the program was $350 billion but the number of loans sought has gone way beyond that amount. Even though the banks have only had the ability to make these loans for less than two weeks, the program ran out of money this morning. That's right; no new applications for these loans can be submitted. That literally puts millions of employees of small businesses at risk of getting nothing. It's an outrage.
A week ago, it was clear that more money will be needed. An attempt was made in the Senate to put another 250 billion bucks into the program which ought to be enough. The Democrats refused to let it be considered. That's right, the Democrats blocked the bill to fund the same program that they had ALL voted for two weeks earlier. Since then, the Democrats have continued to block more funding for the Paycheck Protection Act. The Democrats are leaving millions of small business employees to fend for themselves rather than giving them the protection that others have gotten.
You may ask why this is happening. The answer is one word: politics. The Dems say that they are not going to allow more money for the relief of these small business employees unless the Senate also provides at the same time more money for hospitals, state government and its employees, the Post Office and some other pet programs (like the money for the Kennedy Center that the Dems forced into the first bill.) They haven't come forward with an actual proposal, these are just talking points. The problem, though, is that the senators are all home on vacation. They're not even talking about the issue.
There is a way to get the cash back into the program is one day, but the Dems won't let it pass.
I understand politics and the need of some of the senators to try to hurt President Trump. That's not where we are right now, though. It's unforgivable that the Democrats are letting millions of American workers go unhelped because they would rather punch Trump than help American families.
The Paycheck Protection Program has proven to be extremely popular. The original amount put into the program was $350 billion but the number of loans sought has gone way beyond that amount. Even though the banks have only had the ability to make these loans for less than two weeks, the program ran out of money this morning. That's right; no new applications for these loans can be submitted. That literally puts millions of employees of small businesses at risk of getting nothing. It's an outrage.
A week ago, it was clear that more money will be needed. An attempt was made in the Senate to put another 250 billion bucks into the program which ought to be enough. The Democrats refused to let it be considered. That's right, the Democrats blocked the bill to fund the same program that they had ALL voted for two weeks earlier. Since then, the Democrats have continued to block more funding for the Paycheck Protection Act. The Democrats are leaving millions of small business employees to fend for themselves rather than giving them the protection that others have gotten.
You may ask why this is happening. The answer is one word: politics. The Dems say that they are not going to allow more money for the relief of these small business employees unless the Senate also provides at the same time more money for hospitals, state government and its employees, the Post Office and some other pet programs (like the money for the Kennedy Center that the Dems forced into the first bill.) They haven't come forward with an actual proposal, these are just talking points. The problem, though, is that the senators are all home on vacation. They're not even talking about the issue.
There is a way to get the cash back into the program is one day, but the Dems won't let it pass.
I understand politics and the need of some of the senators to try to hurt President Trump. That's not where we are right now, though. It's unforgivable that the Democrats are letting millions of American workers go unhelped because they would rather punch Trump than help American families.
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