As the coronavirus pandemic began shutting down the U.S. economy in March, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) spearheaded legislation creating the $670 billion Paycheck Protection Program, one of the most expensive business-rescue frameworks in history. Rubio, who is chairman of the Senate’s Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, now faces the challenge of steering more resources to millions of already ravaged companies so they can survive the next few months. Rubio in an interview with the Wall Street Journal discussed the small-business relief package that he and Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) proposed July 27 that is now being negotiated with Senate Democrats. The proposal includes $190 billion for a revamped PPP and creating a $100 billion program to provide long-term, low-cost loans to certain struggling businesses including those located in low-income areas. "We have to build a bridge between where we are today and over the next few months," Rubio said. "Part of it is helping these viable small businesses survive so they can be in a position to reinvent themselves when things begin to go back to a new normal."
