Review of the Day: 'Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World's Most Dangerous Man' by Mary L. Trump
"Trump, a trained clinical psychologist and the niece of President Donald Trump, delivers a concise and damning account of her family's dysfunctions and their role in shaping her uncle's toxic blend of cruelty, incompetence, and vainglory." more »
"Trump, a trained clinical psychologist and the niece of President Donald Trump, delivers a concise and damning account of her family's dysfunctions and their role in shaping her uncle's toxic blend of cruelty, incompetence, and vainglory." more »
Trump Friends and Family Cleared for Millions in Small
Business Bailout
Beneficiaries of the PPP included a lettuce farming venture
backed by Trump’s son, Kushner companies, and a dentist who golfs with the
president. The figures were released after a lawsuit by several news
organizations, including ProPublica.
by Jack Gillum, Isaac Arnsdorf, Jake Pearson and Mike Spies
July 6, 8:35 p.m. EDT
President Donald Trump and his daughter Ivanka Trump taking
questions about the Paycheck Protection Program with Treasury Secretary Steven
Mnuchin on April 28. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses
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Update, July 7, 2020: This story has been updated to include
a statement from Peter Febo, chief operating officer of Kushner Companies.
Businesses tied to President Donald Trump’s family and
associates stand to receive as much as $21 million in government loans designed
to shore up payroll expenses for companies struggling amid the coronavirus
pandemic, according to federal data released Monday.
A hydroponic lettuce farm backed by Trump’s
eldest son, Donald Jr., applied for at least $150,000 in Small Business
Administration funding. Albert Hazzouri, a dentist frequently spotted at Mar-a-Lago, asked for a
similar amount. A hospital run by Maria Ryan, a close associate of Trump lawyer
and former mayor Rudy Giuliani, requested more than $5 million. Several companies connected to the president’s son-in-law
and White House adviser, Jared Kushner, could get upward of $6 million.
There’s no ban on businesses connected to Trump’s orbit
receiving money. Democrats added a provision to the CARES Act excluding
government officials and their family members from receiving some bailout
funds, but not those from the PPP.
The firms sought funding under the Paycheck Protection
Program, one of the Trump administration’s sweeping pandemic relief efforts.
Created in late March by the CARES Act, it allowed small businesses —
generally, those with fewer than 500 employees — to apply for loans of up to
$10 million. The loans can be forgiven if used to cover payroll, rent, mortgage
interest or utilities.
The program paid out $521 billion to almost 4.9 million
companies in an effort to provide relief for small businesses and their workers
amid the sudden economic shock brought on by the pandemic. As applications
slowed after the initial rush, $132 billion remained unspent, and Congress
voted to extend the program.
After resisting releasing the names, the government bowed to
pressure from critics and watchdog groups. On Monday, the administration
disclosed only those entities that were approved by banks for loans over
$150,000. A consortium of news organizations, including ProPublica, has sued
the administration under the Freedom of Information Act to release the full list
of recipients and loan details.
The program has been criticized for including some loan
recipients, particularly large, publicly traded companies, and for favoring
wealthier businesses that had existing relationships with banks. In some cases
customers could essentially skip the line. Overall, however, many economists
praise the PPP for having gotten billions to companies relatively quickly.
The New York Observer, the news website that Kushner ran
before entering the White House and is still owned by his brother-in-law’s
investment firm, was approved for between $350,000 and $1 million, data shows.
A company called Princeton Forrestal LLC that is at least 40 percent owned by
Kushner family members, according to a 2018 securities filing, was approved for
$1 million to $2 million. Esplanade Livingston LLC, whose address is the same
as that of the Kushner Companies real estate development business, was approved
for $350,000 to $1 million. The company’s Chief Operating Officer, Peter Febo,
responded, “Several of our hotels have applied for federal loans, in accordance
with all guidelines, with a vast majority of funds going to furloughed
employees.” The loans to Kushner-related companies were first reported by The
Daily Beast.
In addition, up to $2 million was approved for the Joseph
Kushner Hebrew Academy, a nonprofit religious school in Livingston, N.J.,
that’s named for Jared Kushner’s grandfather and supported by the family.
In April, a bank approved a loan of between $150,000 and
$350,000 for the Pennsylvania dental practice of Albert Hazzouri, who golfs
with Trump and frequents Mar-a-Lago, the president’s private club in Palm
Beach, Florida. In 2017, Hazzouri used his access to the president to pass him
a policy proposal on club stationery on behalf of the American Dental
Association. He addressed the note to Trump “Dear King.”
Hazzouri also leaned on his relationship with Trump in an
unsuccessful bid to obtain a dentistry license to expand his business in
Florida. Hazzouri didn’t immediately return calls seeking comment Monday.
Firms tied to the president’s children also stand to benefit
from the program. A small indoor lettuce farming business applied for funds
between $150,000 and $350,000, SBA data show. Trump Jr. had invested in Eden
Green Technology, a vertical farming company just south of Dallas, whose
co-chair, Gentry Beach, was a Trump campaign fundraiser.
Trump Jr. purchased his shares as Beach sought Trump
administration funding for his other global business interests, ProPublica
first reported in December 2018.
The company has said Trump Jr. played no role in running Eden
Green and was brought in during “U.S. friends and family fundraising efforts.”
A spokesman, Trevor Moore, said that the company “followed the standard
procedure” in applying for the PPP loan and that “receiving it has provided for
the preservation of 18 jobs.” It’s not clear how much Trump Jr. invested or
whether he’s been paid any dividends since purchasing his shares. Neither Trump
Jr. nor a spokesman returned a message seeking comment.
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