I’m dashing out the door and cannot do this incredible work by Judicial Watch justice, but wanted to get it up now hot off the presses!
For years I’ve wondered how you get at this information on special loans for special people and now I know—someone does a Freedom of Information Act request (a specialty of JW as Hillary knows so well!).
Here is how the story begins:
The U.S. government gives refugees on public assistance special “loans” of up to $15,000 to start a business but fails to keep track of defaults that could translate into huge losses for American taxpayers, records obtained by Judicial Watch reveal. The cash is distributed through a program called Microenterprise Development run by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Refugee Resettlement.
Since 2010 the program has granted thousands of loans to refugees that lack the financial resources, credit history or personal assets to qualify for business loans from commercial banks. Most if not all the recipients already get assistance or subsidies from the government, according to the qualification guidelines set by the Microenterprise Development Program. It’s a risky operation that blindly gives public funds to poor foreign nationals with no roots in the U.S. and there’s no follow up to assure the cash is paid back. The idea behind it is to “equip refugees with the skills they need to become successful entrepreneurs” by helping them expand or maintain their own business and become financially independent.
You gotta read this, continue here.
If you are looking for an organization to donate to—Judicial Watch is it!
Afterthought: Repeatedly you see news stories that refugees are opening new businesses at record rates and thus boosting the local economy. (Opening businesses with your financial help.) This information makes me wonder how many of those new businesses survive for even a year or two?