Republicans talk a good game about loving small businesses, but Donald Trump’s government shutdown is once again showing how true that isn’t. Many small businesses stand to suffer from the shutdown. That includes those with government contracts that will face interruptions, but it’s much bigger than that.
“Retail store traffic fell an average 7.3 percent each week of the 2013 shutdown compared with the same period a year earlier, according to ShopperTrak data obtained by CNBC,” an effect that’s much larger in areas like Washington, D.C., and its suburbs, where many federal workers live, and near national parks, where decreased numbers of visitors meant tourist-oriented businesses took a hit.
Small businesses looking for government loans will also face problems, since the Small Business Administration is closed except for disaster services.
Small businesses were hurt during a 16-day government shutdown in 2013 when former President Barack Obama was in the White House. As Forbes reports, small business loan approval rates dropped from 50 percent to 44.3 percent at small banks. Small business approval rates at big banks dropped by nearly 20 percent.
But Donald wants his precious wall, so screw them all.