Congress Should Reject Subsidies for America’s Most Successful Companies
Congress Should Reject Subsidies for America’s Most Successful Companies
(Washington D.C.) – The Export-Import Bank, which uses taxpayer dollars to guarantee loans by overseas customers of American companies, is currently scheduled to cease operation on June 30th – unless Congress acts to renew its authorization. If Congress rejects appeals from companies and Interest groups that benefit from these taxpayer subsidies, the agency will sunset as it is currently scheduled to do. The Bank itself only benefits less than 1 percent of 1 percent of small businesses in the U.S., and is often described as “corporate Welfare “ and “crony Capital ism” from conservatives and others who support a phase-out of the bank. Even President Obama called it “little more than a fund for corporate Welfare .” Its beneficiaries include some of America’s largest and most successful multinational firms – often for sales of products to nations that are not supportive of America’s foreign policy priorities.
Daniel Garza, Executive Director of the LIBRE Initiative, released the following statement:
“The government should not be picking winners and losers by awarding funds to some companies and not others – even through loan guarantees. Cronyism expands government control over the market, and turns it into a system of special favors paid for by the taxpayers. It’s time for government to respect the hard work of American entrepreneurs, by allowing small businesses to compete without government granting special favors to the well-connected.
Hispanics make up the largest small business owning minority in the U.S., and in many cases taxpayer money is going to their larger competitors. Government should not be allowed to play favorites at the expense of this – or any – community. Congress should not interfere with a phase-out of the bank which is already scheduled in the law.”
For interviews with a LIBRE representative, please contact: Brian Faughnan, 703-678-4581 or Steven Cruz, 202-578-6173.
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