The Daily Signal - There’s No Question Prices Are Elevated’: Trump Official Addresses Small Businesses’ Economic Pain | Kelly Loeffler

Episode Date: May 20, 2026

Small Business Administrator Kelly Loeffler acknowledged that Americans are facing increased prices but promised that the economy will be better than ever after the Iran War ends. “There's no question in recent weeks, prices have bumped up because of rising gas prices due to the Iranian blockade of the Strait of Hormuz now,” Loeffler told The Daily Signal in an exclusive interview. “Obviously, with gas prices bumping up, that does ripple through the supply chain.” But Loeffler said she’s doing “everything we can in the meantime until the conclusion of this war, which we do believe is short term, to continue to alleviate the pressures of the Biden administration.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to the Daily Signal podcast, where we provide intelligence for the intelligent. Now, without further ado, here's today's take. I'm at the Small Business Administration with Administrator Kelly Loeffler. Thank you so much for sitting down with me today. It's wonderful to be with you. Thanks, Elizabeth. You're on the president's Fraud Task Force. You've been a lot of work on that. Looking into fraud of taxpayer dollars, could you walk me through your findings so far?

Yeah, absolutely. Look, it's a great honor to serve on this task force. and grateful to President Trump giving the full resources of the federal government to it and to Vice President Vance for his strong leadership, which is why we've been able to announce so many things. Certainly at the SBA, the day I came in well over a year ago, I announced that we had a zero tolerance policy on fraud. And what does that mean? It meant that we were going to look at every corner of the agency. And the biggest area that we found was within the COVID-era fraud. So we know that $1.2 trillion went out from the SBA during COVID. And the Biden Inspector General himself said

that there were about $200 billion worth of PPP fraud committed under the SBA's programs. Now, when we came in, we immediately got to work on that, identified went state by state and are making those announcements. And most recently announced that $22 billion has been identified turned over to Treasury for collection, totaling 562,000 borrowers who committed fraud against the federal government. So now not only are we going for collections, but we're looking at prosecution through the Department of Justice. And so this is the accountability that the American taxpayers deserve. This is not a partisan issue. It's not about Republicans or Democrats, but frankly, Democrats have made it their business to perpetuate fraud.

the Biden administration started forgiving known fraudulent loans. And so we want to make sure we get this agency into a situation where that can never happen again. How many people do you think you're going to be prosecuting here for this widespread fraud? Well, certainly there were millions of PPP loans given out. I just talked about a half million folks being prosecuted potentially right now, certainly going through collections. We're also going state by state. And so when I say that, there's some crossover between the state-by-state announcements we've made, you know, take California where there are 112,000 borrowers borrowing $8.6 billion in potentially fraudulent loans that they haven't paid back, or maybe they have, but were fraudulently obtained.

So we are going to be looking at those pools of people who really stole money from small businesses. We know that during the pandemic, thousands of small businesses closed, and they closed because they couldn't get the PPP funding that fraudsters were stealing. So we have to make sure that never happens again, and we have to make sure taxpayers get their money back because it's their money. It's not the government's money. There's not some mysterious vault sitting there with money. It's the taxpayers who write their federal income tax payments to the government. And so we're working on with Treasury and the DOJ to complete the drill. How would that reimbursement of taxpayers go? Well, first of all, we have an obligation to pursue those refunds of either fraudulently obtain loans or delinquent loans through Treasury.

So working very closely with Treasury on that. We're working through that process with the DOJ. And obviously, we let them take care of the investigation. side, but within the SBA, we have our Office of Inspector General. And this is what's important about the OIG, the Inspector General's work, is they are in real time prosecuting fraudsters from pandemic-era loans, PPP and Idle, and people are going to jail now. So you can actually go to the SBA's website and see fraud rings, criminals, illegal aliens getting loans. You can see people getting sentenced and prosecutions happening now. So that's a fact. That is underway.

You focused a lot on California and Minnesota so far. You said you're going to be going state by state. What states are next on your list of priorities? Well, we just announced Maine. So while Maine isn't the size or scale as a state in terms of fraud, the concentration of it is striking. 1,500 borrowers in Maine, $93 million in fraudulently attained loans. And so you look at these states where there's more of a socialist welfare policy where they look the other way and let this fraud unfurl. And it certainly is not good for the business conditions in the state. You see that in Minnesota.

Businesses are leaving by the droves. California people are leaving because of this very high. tax state that they have to keep these taxes up because the amount of waste, fraud, and abuse in the system is costing taxpayers and they're fleeing the state. So it's good for taxpayers and it's good for employers to have that accountability. And we are going to do it regardless, whether it's a red state or a blue state. The vice president's been giving some attention to Ohio as well. Would that be a priority really forward? Absolutely. You know, as I said, this should not be part is an issue. Unfortunately, Democrats have made it their business to profit off this from a

perspective of this is their base. They look the other way in terms of the fraud. We see it in California. We saw it clearly in Minnesota with the Somalian fraud rings. The money that was potentially flowing overseas. I mean, look at Somalia. It's a $12 billion economy. And you look at the scale of fraud in Minnesota. And you can see why the residents and businesses there are our. outraged. And so, yeah, we owe it to taxpayers who just recently on April 15th paid their taxes. They don't want a dollar of that to be stolen because every dollar that is stolen does not go to a deserving small business, does not go to a child who needs autism care, a senior who might need hospice care. And I talked to Dr. Oz recently, and he said of the 800 firms that they cut

off over a billion in funding, no one called and complained. They knew they were committing fraud. They weren't going to pick up the phone and argue against that fraud getting cut off. They're hoping no one notices. Well, guess what? People are noticing and we're coming after them. You recently talked about there being a $50 billion program that's never been looked at that you're looking at. Could you tell me a little bit about that and what you're doing about it? Well, under the Biden administration, we all know that DEI proliferated. It proliferated in to federal contracting, small socially and economically disadvantaged businesses. This is a part of federal contracting that was put into law under Jimmy Carter.

And it had never been audited. Well, it does turn out that there were a number of pass-through and shell companies related to DEI contracting. And so from day one, we started looking into that. we immediately reversed what the Biden administration had done, which was mandate that 15% of contracting should go to these DEI contracts, we reverted back to statutory 5% levels. And then from there have seen cases ranging from the USAID bribery case, which involved a $650 million contract. And we're just cleaning all of that up right now. So we're going to make sure that deserving

small businesses get those contracts, and that's what's happening. What can we expect to see from you on cracking down in fraud in continuing months as this task force continues to do its work? Yeah, so the vice president is right in saying that there's no fraud that is too small. What we want to do is create an environment where it's impossible to defraud the federal government, to stop it in its tracks, but to prosecute, laying down the deterrent. that we need to stop this fraud. Because right now there's no deterrence. Under the Biden administration,

they let thousands of fraudsters off the hook and just said they can keep the money. That ends with this administration. That's over. So enforcing technology protocols, background research protocols, before you can get an SBA loan now, you have to fill out your birth date.

We know that thousands of borrowers over the age of 115 and under the age of 15 and under the age of 11, we're able to access SBA loans to the tune of something like $600 million. That should never happen. Non-citizens should not be able to access loans. So we are building an infrastructure that rivals the most modern financial technology systems that bar fraud, but also the systems within the government that make deterrence finally possible. And then to the extent people do slip through that there is accountability.

Wow, sounds like those ages. Hard to believe that could be real people above the age of 115. I don't think they were real people. Moving on to the economy a little bit is that small businesses have been struggling with rising prices, things like gas, oil, groceries with the war in Iran. When will those Americans who own small businesses or work at them feel relief? Well, there's no question in recent weeks. Prices have bumped up because of rising gas prices due to the Iranian. blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. Now, obviously, with gas prices bumping up, that does ripple through the supply chain. That's going to be a short-term impact to what is a longer-term path

that President Trump got underway from day one to bring inflation down to where it was just before the war at 2.4%. And so when you have low inflation, low core inflation, but high growth, low taxes, deregulation, fair trade, energy dominance. This will be the path to an economy like none we've ever seen. And we just saw with the tax cuts, $7,000 on average coming back to small businesses. Now, remember, every single Democrat voted for tax increases, not just on our small business, but certainly on our main street job creators that create two out of every three new jobs. But on those that work for them, the waitress, the welder, Democrats voted against no tax on tip and no tax on overtime wages. Now, that's completely unfair to hardworking Americans.

Why should they have to send more money here to Washington when they know best how they need to spend and save it? And also on our seniors, Democrats voted to raise income taxes on seniors. So thanks to no tax on tips over time in Social Security, 55 million Americans benefited from it, not to mention the 36 million small businesses that have now gotten certainty on their tax rate, a certainty that only big companies previously had. So when you couple tax cuts, deregulation and fair trade, this is the foundation for bringing back our stronger economic growth than we've ever seen. You said about a month ago that prices would stabilize soon. What's your message to American business owners who are continuing to struggle with the current environment?

Well, there's no question that prices are elevated now. We're doing everything we can in the meantime until the conclusion of this war, which we do believe is short term, to continue to alleviate the pressures of the Biden administration. Remember, Democrats are the party of high prices. They drove up the cost of gasoline. They drove up the cost of gasoline. They drove. up interest rates. They drove up price levels, 20%. That was their policy. And there was no war going on except for their war on Main Street, their war on American energy dominance. And so what we are seeing is that as we become America's dominant energy producer, reshoring our manufacturing, where we have record exports, where we have 10% business investment in the last GDP growth, where we have more manufacturing jobs than have been added in the last three years. 300,000 private sector jobs created.

When we get through the other side of this war, we are going to get back to a more stable price environment than we have ever had and lower energy prices for longer than they've ever been. Are you considering giving any kind of aid to small businesses if this high-price environment continues? We are doing that every day by cutting regulations. The Biden administration applied five,

trillion dollars of regulations during their four years, both through the Biden executive orders, massively expanded Green New Deal mandates through the regulatory agencies, were rolling those back. Regulation and taxes are two of small businesses' biggest threats. And those were two promises that the Biden administration would have carried on had President Trump not been elected. They wanted higher taxes. They wanted more regulation. So as we help peel that back, that's giving relief to small businesses, which is why we have all-time record small business formation happening in this country this year. It's one of the most underreported pieces of news. Right at about 500, 550,000 entities formed in the last month, building on about a 400 to 500,000 average during President Trump's

term. Nothing says optimism and confidence in the future like starting a small business or hiring employees. And we've seen those both really trend upwards. Speaking of those taxes, the president has talked about asking Congress to suspend the federal gas tax. Is that something that you think would help small businesses? Well, look, I think the president's very open to considering whatever relief might be helpful. And he's certainly done that already. Look at the Jones Act, where He's given extended relief on the Jones Act. It's a shipping rule related to how we move fuel and refined products around the United States. He's certainly talked about the gas tax and other state governors have taken some action.

So I think he's really looking at a portfolio of additional options. Other regulatory relief, you contrast that with the state like California with massive regulations where their gas prices are persistently high because of onerous regulations. I think the president is going to be very mindful of what lovers really would work to have relief. And I think he's fully committed to the mission of ensuring that Iran never has a nuclear weapon. I think that's something the vast majority of Americans agree with, particularly when you see a nuclear empowered, you think about a nuclear empowered Iran and what they could do with their thumb on the price of the world. world's energy supplies like oil. And they just show how they would use that threat. So I think this president has taken quick action to do what presidents for the last four decades had hoped

or wished they had done. And he's going to continue to end this threat once and for all. Are tariffs harming small businesses? And what would you say to small business owners that complain about this? Yeah. Look, when you hear the word tariff, think fair trade, our country. had suffered for four or five decades of hollowing out our manufacturing base for bad trade policy that sent our jobs, factories, and know-how overseas. Now, thanks to President Trump, and he's been outspoken on this issue since the 1980s when he ran ads in the paper, talking about how we're getting ripped off, how we're getting laughed at. This president is standing up for American industry and the American worker, and I see it as I travel across this country. I've been on

more than a year-long manufacturing tour because most manufacturers in America are small businesses, 98% of them, and they're creating jobs now like they never have been. The working family tax cuts give them 100% expensing for made in America, immediate depreciation for buying that new machinery. And when I walk a factory floor with an owner, they don't talk about tariffs hurting them. They talk about them helping them. They're saying, I was down to one shift, Cusa Steel in Rome, Georgia. I was down to one shift a couple days a week. Now he's up to two shifts, five or six days a week and thinking about a third

shift, because the world is coming here to purchase goods, which is why we've hit record export orders. It's why our purchasing managers index is up month to month to month, four months in a row. That's a leading indicator that points to economic expansion. And so these are tremendous turnarounds from where we came from in the Biden administration, where we came in with a $1.2 trillion trade deficit. That's being cut now, and we are now respected around the world, and people are coming to do business with us now. In January, you started reviewing whether Planned Parenthood affiliates illegally received $88 million in loans during the COVID-19 pandemic. Where is this review now? Well, look, this started back in 2020.

when I was in the U.S. Senate, I led a letter to object to Planned Parenthood getting PPP funds at all. I mean, this is why the Fraud Task Force is important. We should make sure that these funds are never even dispersed because they're harder to claw back than they are to stop at the front end. And I know the vice president's very focused on how we cut that off. But look, the Biden administration said, nope, they wanted to blow through the affiliation laws that prevented plan from getting that money and allow them to have those loans and forgave those loans. And so what I would just say is our agency has really ensured that we look at where we can make sure that doesn't happen again and that we cooperate in any of the investigations or whatever might be the Senate.

I know the Senate's been talking about this as well. So look, they wrongly got PPP. loans and, you know, that's something that, you know, I came in on day one and said, you know, we're going to reopen and have a look at that. How's that review going so far? Well, it's in process. We published the letters, I believe, you know, that we sent and we did let people know that we had contacted them and let them know that they did get the money unlawfully. And so that's an ongoing process. Did you sent letters to, I believe, 38 Planned Farenthood affiliates asking them to prove whether or not they should have received those loans. Have you heard

back from them in that time? Yeah. So I think we, for the most part, are conducting those conversations. But as part of an open process, I can't speak too much to it right now. But we have certainly taken a lead on that important matter that I have been tracking for six years. Some Congress members have even urged SBA to debar Planned Parenthood from receiving federal

funding due to alleged wrongdoing. Is this on the table? Well, look, at the SBA, we have strict guidelines around lending, and it's clear that affiliation rules would have prohibited Planned Parenthood from, should have prohibited, plan parenthood from getting those funds. And so that's already not possible for Planned Parenthood under the application of the law to get those funds. As you mentioned earlier, you've been traveling around the country, meeting with business owners. You've gone to, I believe, more than 20 states. There's been speculation about your political future in Georgia amid this travel. Do you intend to

stay until the end of your term, and would you rule out a run for Senator or Governor of Georgia? Well, I think I've been to 40 states, but, and that's my favorite part of the job, just as it was when I was a senator getting back home to go around Georgia, my 100% focus is serving President Trump in this administration and serving hardworking small businesses across this country. great honor. And as someone who grew up in a small business, a farming family, a small trucking company, grew up waitressing in small businesses in high school and college, there is no greater honor than doing what I'm doing right now to serve President Trump in this capacity and to serve our great nation, not just in our 250th anniversary, but really building free enterprise for the next

250 years, I'm so proud that this agency is potentially the most free enterprise agency in the federal government because many of our programs operate at no cost to the taxpayer. Our loan program that hit record levels, $45 billion in the history of the 72-year history of this agency, of course, under President Trump set a new record. That program is a zero subsidy program. So these are the types of things. I love building companies. I love creating opportunities for the next generation of entrepreneurs. And it's a great blessing to do it. That's great. And as you've been traveling, meeting with all these small business owners, what have you learned from them about the way from administration's policies are affecting small business? Yeah. I mean, that's my favorite

thing to do is walk these factory floors, walk the stores or the shops or the restaurants with the entrepreneurs, the owners, the builders. in our country and getting feedback. And the feedback is something that I take to heart. I bring back to Washington. The thing I hear most is keep going. We love the tax cuts. We love the deregulation. We love the opportunity to get out from under the thumb of the government. And what can we do to just amplify this administration's policy at the state and local level? Because in some states, they're holding small businesses back from participating in the Trump administration agenda, whether it's tax cuts, deregulation, energy, dominance. So they want more of it. And I would just say,

I learn from them every single day. And it really does shape the policies that we put to advance the interests of small business here. Absolutely. Thank you so much for your time. Thank you, Elizabeth.