Missouri congresswoman takes a federal PPP loan, then balks at further COVID-19 relief
U.S. Rep Vicky Hartzler, a Republican from Missouri, isn’t a fan of the latest coronavirus stimulus bill circulating on Capitol Hill.
“I don’t know a single Republican who was asked for input on this $3 trillion bill,” she tweeted this week. House Democrats were prepared to approve the measure as early as Friday.
Hartzler will almost certainly be a “no” vote on more financial help for Missourians struggling in the current crisis. And that’s more than strange because when it comes to taking federal handouts, Vicky Hartzler is a veteran.
She got a forgivable paycheck protection loan in April. “Our family businesses applied for and received PPP loans to ensure our employees could remain employed and the business could pay expenses,” the congresswoman said.
We asked her office to tell us the amount of the loans and provide the number of her employees protected by the federal program. A spokesman refused.
“I can point you to Rep. Hartzler’s statement on her family businesses taking PPP loans,” spokesman Danny Jativa said in an email. “That is the only information the office has put out.”
The lack of transparency is unacceptable. Hartzler’s family broke no laws in applying for the forgivable loans, but her constituents have a right to know how much of their money was used to protect her business interests.
They should also know if Hartzler’s application received preferential treatment.
Hartzler’s handouts aren’t limited to the PPP program. Hartzler Farms Inc. has taken almost $1.2 million in crop subsidies since 1996, according to a database compiled by the Environmental Working Group. That includes more than $375,000 taken during her time in Congress.
Hartzler Farms took $109,000 in 2018 alone for crop losses that were partially the result of President Donald Trump’s trade war with China. That’s about 14 times the average payout to farmers in the state.
Yes, this is hypocrisy of the first order. Hartzler has sharply criticized excessive federal spending over the years and has cosponsored balanced budget amendments, an idea that is now laughable.
She has repeatedly endorsed cuts to the federal food stamp program, known as SNAP. “Socialism and big government takeovers don’t work,” she said in February.
This approach — money for me, and not for thee — is particularly dangerous in the current environment. The COVID-19 pandemic has crushed businesses across the nation, including many in Hartzler’s district. The jobless rate may soon exceed that in the Great Depression.
Congress needs to do more. Hartzler may want to listen to her Missouri colleague, Sen. Josh Hawley, who has offered legislation guaranteeing a portion of some workers’ earnings for the duration of the pandemic. While there are flaws in Hawley’s bill, the idea of keeping workers whole while the economy recovers is sound.
And Hartzler should know this. The web of subsidies surrounding agriculture was first assembled during the Depression, when farm bankruptcies were rampant. That system more or less exists today, and Hartzler uses it.
For a quarter century, at least, Vicky Hartzler’s hand has been in the government’s pocket, seeking help for her business. Now her neighbors need help, too. Instead of rejecting another round of coronavirus relief, the congresswoman should step forward and offer concrete proposals to provide it.