small business loans


July 29, 2010 WASHINGTON (Reuters) — Senate Republicans blocked a -billion plan to help community banks boost lending to small businesses, dealing a blow to President Barack Obama’s election-year battle to reduce unemployment. Tempers ran high as Democratic leaders failed to muster the 60 votes needed to advance the measure over Republican objections. Republicans were upset that Democrats shut them out from amending the package that also includes about billion in tax breaks for small businesses. “Enough is enough. This has been anything but a jobs agenda,” said Republican Senator Olympia Snowe. The Maine moderate has voted with Democrats on a number of issues, most recently to extend jobless benefits to the long-term unemployed, but voted against this time. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell accused Democrats of playing election-year politics and complained about billions of dollars in spending added to the package. “This thing now has more than a billion dollars of agriculture spending in it,” McConnell argued. Obama twice this week called for the Senate to pass the bill. He wants to show Americans he is focused on job creation, mindful that voter anxiety over the lackluster economy and the 9.5 percent unemployment rate could translate into big losses for his Democratic Party in November congressional election. An earlier Democratic effort to pass a jobs package that included money for cash-strapped states and extended some expired individual and tax breaks …