The initial coronavirus relief funding package (CARES Act) included $380 billion targeted to small businesses as part of the larger congressional relief package.  Within the SBA section small and medium businesses can apply for loans to cover payroll (75%), called payroll protection plan (ppp); and expenses (25%).  If the PPP funding is used to keep employees on payroll the loan is forgiven.   Thousands of businesses have applied.

Due to the success of the SBA targeted funding, the $380 billion may run out before all of the applications are covered.  Treasury Secretary Mnuchin asked Speaker Pelosi and Senate Leader McConnell for an additional $250 billion infusion into the program.

Senator McConnell framed a bill to provide the additional funds and asked for unanimous consent to advance the legislation.  However, speaker Pelosi doesn’t want to miss an opportunity to add pet project (constituent funding) to the bill.  Speaker Pelosi instructed Senator Ben Cardin to object to the unanimous consent request and block the funds.

WASHINGTON – Senate Democrats on Thursday blocked a Republican push to unanimously pass a bill to put $250 billion more into a loan program for small businesses devastated by the coronavirus pandemic.

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Sketchy Nikki Haley endorsed Sketchy Kelly Loeffler right before Loeffler’s insider trading schemes surfaced.  Given the fact that Haley and Loeffler are both ‘Big Club’ insiders; and considering the extremes Ms. Haley is going through to retain her mask; there is a dose of karmic comedy as we watch sketchy Ms. Loeffler slowly implode.

The latest polling shows Representative Doug Collins is now crushing the corrupt and sketchy Big-Club-appointed Senator Loeffler by 23 points.  Under increasing scrutiny for her insider Wall Street schemes; and in a futile attempt to save herself; Loeffler now promises to liquidate all her stock holdings:

WASHINGTON DC – Sen. Kelly Loeffler plans to liquidate all of her individual stock holdings after weeks of political firestorm over trades made amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Loeffler (R-Ga.), who was sworn into the Senate in January after her appointment to fill a vacant seat and is on the ballot in a special election this November, has been criticized heavily by Democrats and her Republican opponent in recent weeks for stock trades made in the early stages of the coronavirus outbreak.

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Earlier this evening on Fox News, Tucker Carlson outlined a disconnect between dire national health models that predicted mass deaths and a reality not close to predictions.

[Review IHME Coronavirus Model HERE]

As Carlson notes there are few professionals explaining why there is such a significant difference. Additionally, if we have shut down our economy based on models that were incorrect, well, when are we going to re-open our economy? Lots of questions… and unfortunately no-one seems to be allowed to ask them.

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In the final analysis this crisis is going to come down to a very tribal set of decisions about when to re-engage the operations of U.S. society. Additionally, what changes and rules will be instituted as a result of some areas wanting to re-open, while others demand the continuance of an extended shut-down.

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HPSCI Chairman Adam Schiff is one of the most partisan political operatives in DC.  Schiff has a reputation of focusing exclusively on politics in every aspect of his responsibility. His political emphasis was highlighted today when chairman Schiff writes a letter to Director of National Intelligence, Richard Grenell, angered that he was not consulted about executive branch personnel changes within the intelligence community.

Adam Schiff is such a hack… His protestations are actually a little funny:

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Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin appears via phone on Fox Business News to discuss the small business payroll/paychecks program. Ms. Bartiromo claims her network of friends in the business community want to use the free government money for themselves; but the Treasury is forcing small businesses to use the money to retain payroll.

Obviously Ms. Bartiromo runs with a very self-centered network of friends incapable of accepting a government program structured to help the workforce they employ (75%). Instead, Ms. Bartiromo’s tribe wants to exploit the angles, fund ways to game the system, use grants to line their own pockets, and operate their own corrupt schemes.

Treasury Secretary Mnuchin informs Bartiromo the loan program (with complete repayment forgiveness) is entirely purposed to pay the employees. It was never designed to replace revenue; only cover all payroll expense and offset 25% of other operating costs. If her friends in businesses don’t like that, too bad.

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Ms. Bartiromo needs to find a better tribe.

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Everything anyone needed to know about the motives and intents of fired Intelligence Community Inspector General (ICIG) Michael Atkinson is evidenced by his releasing a political statement tonight protesting his termination.

Atkinson doesn’t write a “letter”, his diatribe is not addressed to anyone, it is just a political “statement” designed to be exploited by the same people, for the same intents, as his prior ICIG work product.  This transparently political effort is ridiculous.

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Coronavirus task force member and FDA Commissioner, Stephen Hahn, appears on Fox News to discuss the latest U.S. effort to mitigate the threat of COVID-19.

Maria Bartiromo asks a great question about what the U.S. can do to reduce our national dependency on China for the manufacturing of critical healthcare products and medicines.  Dr Hahn explains the FDA role in that process and what intervention is possible by the U.S. government to mitigate that dependency.

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One of the positive outcomes from this larger conversation is increased public pressure on government officials to support what President Donald Trump has been saying for years about bringing back critical manufacturing to the U.S.  Long before he was a politician President Trump was very public in saying this should be our number-one priority.

Donald Trump is exactly the right president for this moment in time.

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Acting DNI Richard Grenell announces the replacement for ICIG Michael Atkinson.

Thomas Monheim is a retired Colonel from the US Air Force Reserves and is currently the General Counsel of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. Previously, Col Monheim served as Associate Counsel to the President and Deputy General Counsel at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

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The lack of independent control over critical healthcare products is highlighting exactly why Donald J Trump has been demanding U.S. manufacturing firms return production to this nation for years.  White House trade advisor Peter Navarro drove home the point yesterday:

[Transcript] – Q: Mr. Navarro, what’s the status of the “Buy American” executive order?

MR. NAVARRO: “One of the — one of the things that this crisis has taught us, sir, is that we are dangerously over-dependent on a global supply chain for our medicines, like penicillin; our medical supplies, like masks; and our medical equipment, like ventilators.

We have — right now as we speak, over 50 countries have already imposed some forms of export restrictions in their country against the rest of the world. And what we’ve — what we’re learning from that is that no matter how many treaties you have, no matter how many alliances, no matter how many phone calls, when push comes to shove you run the risk, as a nation, of not having what you need.”

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Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin provided additional information at the white house briefing today including an important new point:  Social Security recipients will not need to file an income tax return to see a direct deposit.

After instruction from President Trump all SSI recipients will participate in the economic relief programs without taking further action.  WATCH:

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