Twitter page of Daniel Defense, the manufacturer of the assault rifle used in Texas. (Photo by OLIVIER DOULIERY / AFP)
Daniel Defense, the company that made the gunman the rifle used to kill 21 people inside an elementary school in Texas this week, is one of hundreds of gun makers and dealers to get emergency small business assistance from federal government. through the Salary Protection Program.
The company, based in Ellabell, Georgia, received a $ 3.1 million loan in early April 2020, a few days later after the relief fund opened, as many companies struggled to overcome the avalanche of applications when the pandemic began.
A machine gun rental billboard stands on the side of the road near the site of the National Rifle Association (NRA) annual convention in Houston, Texas, USA. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton
The loan, made by Cadence Bank, was used to support about 200 employees, according to government records.
Daniel Defense met the program requirements for debt forgiveness, and the government paid for it in June 2021.
A Daniel Defense rifle was used in the attack at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, on Tuesday, according to a state police report received by state Sen. John Whitmire of Houston.
Nineteen children and two adults were killed at the school and several other children were injured.
The 18-year-old gunman also wounded his grandmother before attacking the school.
“We are deeply saddened by the tragic events in Texas this week,” the company wrote in a statement posted on its website.
“We will work with all federal, state and local law enforcement authorities in their investigations.”
Company representatives did not immediately respond to questions about the Paycheck Protection Program loan.
The Small Business Administration, which manages the program, declined to comment, citing the agency’s policy of “spanning multiple previous administrations” not to comment on individual borrowers.
When asked about the loan at the White House news conference on Thursday, Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, said it was the first time she had heard about the loan and she would look into it.
Nearly all small businesses in America, typically defined by the government as those with fewer than 500 workers, qualify for assistance through the Paycheck Protection Program, which requires applicants to simply prove that “economic uncertaintyBecause of the pandemic, they had to seek help from government funding.
Daniel Defense is a private company, so it doesn’t publicly report its sales, but government data shows that make more guns by 2020after the pandemic, compared to last year.
The company produced more than 51,000 guns in 2020 and fewer than 32,000 in 2019, according to data from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
almost 500 manufacturers and retailers of firearms and ammunition received federal support through an $ 800 billion assistance program.
The industry collectively took out loans worth $ 125 million, according to the New York Times analysis of government data.
Twenty -three manufacturers, including Daniel Defense, received loans of $ 1 million or more.
The largest, at $ 10 million, the highest loan available through the relief fund, went to RemArms, a Georgia company that acquired assets and a manufacturing plant from Remington after it filed for bankruptcy bankruptcy.
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Source: Clarin
