Eye on Boise: Sen. Risch, Idaho Commerce Department urge supporting local businesses

Sen. Jim Risch, in cooperation with the Idaho Department of Commerce and an array of partners, is kicking off a “Support Local Gems” initiative, urging Idahoans to support local businesses by ordering take-out, buying gift cards and posting supportive messages on social media.

Risch, a former Senate Small Business Committee chairman, said, “We are a consumer society, and right now our small businesses are struggling.”

The Gems initiative will launch Monday; other partners include the other three members of Idaho’s congressional delegation; Gov. Brad Little; the Idaho associations of cities and counties; the Idaho Chamber Alliance; and the Idaho Retailers Association.

Asked if small businesses in Idaho would benefit more if Congress put more money into the Paycheck Protection Program – the federal initiative to help businesses impacted by COVID-19 with forgivable loans, which ran out of money after just 13 days despite being allocated $349 billion – Risch said, “The answer is yes.”

“You’re absolutely right,” he said. “The bad news is we ran out of money. The good news is everybody knows that this was incredibly successful.” He said “glitches” that came up in the program “were really de minimus compared to the amount of money that we put out there.”

“It’s bipartisan, it’s widely supported,” Risch said. “An additional quarter-trillion dollars should have been put in there a week ago. I’m almost certain … that more money is going to be added to the PPP program.”

He said he’s advising businesses still awaiting funding to “sit tight – we’re going to get more money in there.”

Risch earlier called for an investigation of the World Health Organization’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, contending it didn’t adequately hold China accountable. Since then, President Trump last week ordered a controversial 60-day hold on U.S. funds to WHO; the United States is the international organization’s biggest single donor.

Risch said WHO has had some successes, specifically citing its partnership with the United States in an anti-AIDS initiative that was “very successful.”

“When President Trump took that money off the table from WHO, he could only take a certain amount off,” Risch said. “Part of it is appropriated by Congress; he can’t take that off.”

Risch, a Trump ally, said: “He’s not taking it off the battlefield. He is going to reallocate that money to the fight against the coronavirus, but giving it to a different general on the battlefield. He has some reservations about how WHO managed this and their relationship with China. There’s some legitimate concerns there.”

Risch said in response to his call for an investigation of WHO, he had a telephone meeting with WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and his management team last week.

“He wanted to talk about it and explain some things, which was good,” Risch said. “It was a very productive meeting, it was a long meeting.

“They acknowledged that going forward, we need to review what happened and see what we can do better. I wanted to have more conversations, and they respectfully asked that we defer this until the fight’s over, and I think that was a reasonable request.”

Candidates comment

Risch is unopposed in the GOP primary in his re-election bid, but two candidates are facing off in the Democratic primary for the chance to challenge him in November. We asked both Paulette Jordan and Jim Vandermaas for their comments. Here they are:

Jordan: “There are two main problems with Sen. Risch’s efforts. First, business owners are furious about the lack of clear guidelines, the small number of lenders participating, and the lag times in getting any kind of answer back about whether or not they even qualify. Many business owners are saying the program may ultimately do more harm than good to their business because they just don’t know how to adjust their business operations while they wait. I think it shows how out-of-touch Sen. Risch is with Idaho business owners. He isn’t listening. It’s a complete mess.

“Secondly, the plan Sen. Risch has worked to create is adding trillions of dollars to our out-of-control federal deficit, which is hypocritical for a senator who claims to be a fiscal conservative. He has just thrown trillions of dollars at a plan which doesn’t work. Now he wants to dump another quarter-trillion into the same program? We need people-first solutions. Idahoans need relief right away, not to be put on a waiting list for help they may not even receive, which is what Sen. Risch’s efforts have done. We clearly need new leadership in the Senate.”

Vandermaas: “This is helpful in the short run, but lacks the foresight we need to actually create sustainable economic recovery. There is an achievable balance between saving the economy and risking more lives! We know many people have already had and survived COVID-19, and yet they are ‘staying home’ with the rest of us. We need to invest both federal and state money into PPE, and antibody testing, so people can feel safe. Both SARS and MERS immunities lasted for 2 and 3 years respectively – which is plenty of time for vaccine development.

“PPP is helpful, but inadequate, just paying businesses to survive, with loan versus grant uncertainty, is not comprehensive enough to actually save the whole economy. If we add aggressively mitigating COVID-19 spread, funding for testing, funds to support hospitals, community health centers, and health systems, aid for states and local governments in need, ensure all people have health care – so no fear in getting treated, and supplement SNAP food stamp benefits.

“The WHO cannot force China to be forthcoming with all facts regarding COVID-19, and is not a political power that can force transparency, so blaming them for acting upon the only facts China provided is irresponsible, and clearly deflecting our leadership’s responsibility. Sen. Risch is the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and could initiate an investigation into China’s conduct.”