On Monday, data was finally released on the Paycheck Protection Program, the pandemic program which gave loans (which acted as grants) to businesses small and large as a way to keep employers afloat during widespread lockdowns. The criteria for the PPP loans was close to non-existent, and basically everybody got a hand-out, even people like Kanye West:
Kanye West’s clothing and sneaker brand Yeezy received a loan from the federal government’s pandemic rescue fund worth between $2 million and $5 million, helping it save 106 jobs, according to data released by the U.S. Treasury Department on Monday.
Yeezy, best known for its $250 sneakers, just announced a major deal with Gap that will have the rap superstar designing hoodies and T-shirts that will be sold in the chain’s 1,100 stores around the world. A representative for Yeezy did not immediately respond to request for comment.
I don’t even imagine that Kanye knew that his Yeezy business asked for those PPP loans, let’s be real. And the conspiracies about this are hysterical too – like Kanye would take a $2 million payout to “run for president.” Kim makes that just from shilling waist trainers on Instagram. Kanye is running for president because the voices in his head are telling him that the Zonkulans from Galaxy 8 want him to be president. Anyway, as it turns out, PPP loans were given to all kinds of Jared Kushner businesses, churches and… Planned Parenthood??
The federal government backed loans totaling as much as $150 million for Planned Parenthood affiliates in recent weeks, according to federal Paycheck Protection Program data released Monday by the Small Business Administration. The loans infuriated anti-abortion-rights conservatives, who cheered last year when President Donald Trump moved successfully to block the organization from getting access to the federal government’s main family planning fund.
The Planned Parenthood money was just one of many revelations that caught the attention of lawmakers and activists across the political spectrum as they pored over the names of more than 600,000 loan recipients Monday. Ultimately, Congress and Trump placed few restrictions on eligibility for the loan program, which was designed to help struggling small businesses and nonprofits meet payroll during the coronavirus crisis.
But in addition to restaurants, mom-and-pop shops and churches, the list of beneficiaries includes a private school named for a grandfather of Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, companies with ties to lawmakers and their families, Washington lobbying shops, Wall Street investment firms and private jet managers. Even the educational affiliate of Americans for Tax Reform — a group led by Grover Norquist, who once said he wanted to shrink government to the size it could be drowned in a bathtub — took a loan of $150,000 to $350,000.
Apparently, the Trump administration has given away $521 billion in PPP loans/grants but the program still has $132 billion left to give away. I mean… on one side, I think that in a global health crisis, it’s good to have money flowing freely. On the other side, it would have been better for the economy to merely keep the stimulus checks flowing to individual tax filers alongside a PPP program with stricter controls. There’s zero reason for churches to apply for (let alone receive) PPP loans. And the PPP was basically acting like a slush fund for Kushner associates.
People are missing the fact that someone at the Ayn Rand Institute had to take the initiative to apply for the PPP loan. That’s called lifting yourself up by the bootstraps. https://t.co/s55O4IeAUg
— Stephanie Kelton (@StephanieKelton) July 6, 2020
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
Yeah, that list was cute.
I work(ed) for a nonprofit trade association that received a PPP and was still laid off 6/30. The rules at the beginning were close to nonexistent and everyone was applying. It also turned out the big banks were taking apps early and when the online app opened they had bots uploading applications, close to 500,000 in the first 5 minutes were loaded and many, many small companies were locked out. I’m on an SBA list serve and there are daily notices with tweaks and updates to the program, so confusing.
I do disagree churches should not have been eligible. Most are not the Catholic Church or mega churches ie Joel Osteen, but they are nonprofits and do have employees, relying on tithing or donations which were likely way, way down as they couldn’t hold services or meet with parishioners, or hold events (renting out church halls is common, wedding season, etc.).
I was about to come and post about ayn rand institute! I legit laughed out loud for that one. For those that don’t know-she’s a famous libertarian that is often cited by GOP cronies in their march to smaller government and not using government support for anything. So the irony is amazing.
Of course-she also took social security and Medicaid checks so the hypocracy isn’t that surprising.
Thank you for explanining, I was wondering about that one!
The range of entities eligible for funding includes 501(c)(3) charities which includes Planned Parenthood affiliates, which are all individually chartered as 501(c)(3) organizations, as are all churches. Loans are capped at 2-1/2 months of payroll and at least 60% (reduced from 75%) has to go to payroll, the rest can be used to pay rent and utilities. The reporting process requires companies to prove how the money was spent. If it was not spent properly, it needs to be repaid.
One can hope it’s closely monitored. Hope being the key word. Ayn Rand not only received SS and Medicare, she was a demonic extremist. Sound familiar. 🙂
My company received a loan. The paperwork to apply for forgiveness is detailed enough that we will need to use our CPA for the reporting. IMHO, the program should have had a ceiling on revenues and reserves. Shake Shack returned their $10 million when it became public that they were flush with cash.
Ayn Rand leaves such a bad taste in my mouth. We were forced to read one of her stupid books (I do not like her) in college. I don’t think much of her and the fact that she is a GOP darling and a nutbar says it all.
I find her writing excruciating and I’ve read some doozies.
My employer received a loan….I personally do not think it was needed, but he says free money (or super low interest repay) well worth it. His business has not suffered with all this. My niece, who owns her own hair/nail salon applied…she was turned down. She was too small! I just want to know how a loan intended to benefit small business can tell someone they are too small for the money! Frustrates me to see all the people that did get and hear of the small ones that did not.
So much of it was determined by the bank processing the loan. Banks wanted to give to businesses where they had a relationship (against the rules) and larger companies in hopes they would get some of their business or increase their existing lines. Since there is money left maybe she should really?
The other thing that will be interesting to watch is the impact on July unemployment numbers, as the original rules said you had to keep a high percentage of employees through June 30 for full forgiveness. Job I was laid off from, effective 6/30, there were 4 of us on a staff of 20. While some of the rules re how the funds could be used have been modified, think there will be a lot of layoffs this month.
The whole PPP was a sham; small businesses were told not to lie and how this was going to be monitored so closely and to be very careful with the whole application, meanwhile, every big company was taking advantage of this “program”. Small businesses have not received the help they so desperately need. Between this and the corruption at the SBA, as a small business owner, I am thoroughly disgusted by everyone involved.
The Ayn Rand Corp getting government money is just too damn delicious. I assume the check was made out to John Galt.
Unreal that they could give all this money away and not give regular working people more than one $1,200 check.
Mitch McTurtle’s wife Comrade Elaine’s family also got a million dollar loan. But sure, Mitch doesn’t want people to receive $600 unemployment checks because they will be too lazy. The irony.
Basically, this was a raid on the Treasury. Drumpf and company giving away our money to all of their entitled friends and allies. Sickening.
My small business received a PPP Loan in May. I expended the funds in 6 weeks on payroll and benefits for 2 employees. When I first received the loan, it had to be expended in 8 weeks or less, but in the middle of my 8 weeks, it was extended to 16 weeks. The stipulations of the PPP have changed while many of us were in the middle of using the funds, which creates so much confusion! I’m now working on my loan forgiveness paperwork.
Isn’t this a great example of the government’s left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing?