The clear intention of the emergency Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) was to help out small businesses, and these larger companies and banks who are taking advantage of it should remember this is not their money, Sen. Martha McSally told Fox News' "Fox & Friends" on Wednesday.
"I tweeted out yesterday: 'Dear big banks, the PPP money is not yours. It's the taxpayers' money and it needs to go to Mom and Pop shops,'" she said.
The large banks are "just processing it. This isn't about their relationships with others who have plenty of access to capital."
McSally said the large banks and companies should "do the right thing," emphasizing, "you big companies out there: give the money back. Support your workers. You big banks out there: you get that money out to those mom and pop shops – those one-person businesses.”
"When we passed this legislation, we said, 'What's the fastest way to get the money out to these small businesses?'" she added. "And, really the words of the day were speed, also grace, good faith, and selflessness."
McSally said it must be remembered, "We are all in this together as Americans. We decided to use the financial institutions to more quickly get this money out" and the situation should not be exploited now by those who need the funds less than others.
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
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