Treasury Says Small-Business Loans Supported Over 50 Million Jobs: Live

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The Treasury reveals more about who got small-business loans.

Restaurants, medical offices and car dealerships were the top recipients of large loans from the federal government’s $660 billion small business relief program, according to data released Monday by the Trump administration.

The data, which the Trump administration released under pressure from lawmakers and watchdog groups, offered the most detailed look yet at the sectors and businesses that took advantage of a program aimed at keeping workers on the payroll amid virus-induced shutdowns.

Yet the information released on Monday was confined to companies that received loans of more than $150,000 through the Paycheck Protection Program, while the administration said that 86.5 percent of the loans were for less than that amount.

The Paycheck Protection Program offers businesses with 500 or fewer employees loans that can be forgiven if the employer meets certain conditions, like using the bulk of funds to pay employees. The information released on Monday was confined to companies that received loans of more than $150,000, offering just a partial picture of where the money went. Here are some of the businesses the Treasury Department said received loans.

Kasowitz Benson Torres, the law firm founded and run by President Trump’s longtime personal lawyer, Marc E. Kasowitz, received a loan of between $5 million and $10 million. The firm represented Mr. Trump for more than a decade before he was elected president, in his business dealings and in other matters, such as helping Mr. Trump keep divorce records sealed. Mr. Kasowitz and the firm also represented Mr. Trump during Robert S. Mueller III’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
As concert venues around the country went dark to prevent the spread of the virus, touring companies for notable musicians appear to have applied for the loans to stay afloat. Lil’ Jon Touring, for example, received a loan of between $150,000 and $350,000. Tamar Juda, Lil Jon’s publicist, said that the loan had allowed the artist to keep his core touring staff employed.
At least four e-sport video game companies received loans of between $150,000 and $2 million, with the largest going to Envy Gaming, which received between $1 million and $2 million, according to the data. The Dallas-based Envy is one of the biggest players in the world of e-sports and fields competitive teams in games like “Fortnite” and “Overwatch.”
Many Washington think tanks and advocacy groups accepted the loans, including some who typically oppose government spending. The conservative Citizens Against Government Waste accepted a loan of between $350,000 and $1 million, as did Citizens United, which fought to enable corporations to spend unlimited funds on elections. The anti-immigration Center for Immigration Students received a loan of between…