EXCLUSIVE — The top Republican on the Senate Small Business Committee is requesting information from the Small Business Administration after allegations the government agency is participating in “politically motivated travel with taxpayer dollars.”
Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) recently sent a letter to SBA Administrator Isabel Guzman, demanding answers after an undercover video was posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, by a conservative video activist that shows an adviser talking about how “Guzman travels across the country to help elect Democrats.”
“The White House was like, yes, go. Invite Sen. Tester. Don’t invite the other senator because he’s a Republican,” says Tyler Robinson, a special adviser to SBA staff, in the video, referencing the Montana Democrat in a critical Senate race this cycle. “And don’t invite the two members of Congress because they’re Republicans.”
Ernst, the ranking member of the Senate Small Business Panel, referenced the report, calling it “troubling” in her letter.
“The senior advisor indicates you and your team are participating in politically motivated travel with taxpayer dollars and hiding controversial small business policy decisions from members of Congress,” Ernst wrote in a letter provided to the Washington Examiner.
“The senior advisor claims you are ‘the most traveled member of the cabinet’ and that your official travel is purposefully targeted to ‘indirectly campaign for Joe Biden’ in a way that attempts to circumvent the Hatch Act,” she added. “Using taxpayer dollars in an attempt to engage in federal campaign activities is a gross abuse of official agency resources and needs to be further investigated.”
The Iowa senator also references the SBA’s collaboration with the Michigan Department of State on a program “to promote civic engagement and voter registration in Michigan,” according to a press release that came out last month. The Michigan Department of State would generate a link for SBA to use to drive online visitors to register to vote. The agency’s Michigan field office would also allow officials to hold voter registration events. The outreach effort comes as President Joe Biden’s campaign focuses on Michigan as a critical state to win.
“Your alleged travel is particularly questionable in light of the SBA’s recent announcement that it finalized the agency’s ‘first-ever voter registration agreement with Michigan Department of State,’” Ernst wrote. “The SBA’s mission is to aid the interests of small businesses, not to swing votes.”
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Ernst sent the letter last Friday, demanding more information from Guzman, looking into whether the agency violated the Hatch Act, which was intended to stop the federal government from affecting elections or acting in a partisan manner. The law applies to federal employees as well as state and local employees who work with federally funded programs.
The Iowa senator asks Guzman for records of travel, internal memos, and staff communications to be delivered no later than May 3, 2024. The Washington Examiner reached out to SBA for comment.
