Mnuchin blasts Lakers for taking PPP loan, says every company receiving over $2 million will get a 'full audit'

Mnuchin.
(Image credit: OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images)

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is a fan of the Los Angeles Lakers, but he's adamant he doesn't support the NBA's second most valuable franchise taking a $4.6 million loan as part of the federal government's Paycheck Protection Program, which is meant for small businesses.

The Lakers gave the money back, which Mnuchin appreciated, but during a Tuesday appearance on CNBC, the secretary said it was "unfortunate" and "inappropriate" for large companies to take the money, especially because the fund ran out so quickly. The Lakers were not the only large business that initially received loans.

He said the fault lies with the recipients, not the banks who doled out the cash, but the government is going to change things going forward. "We're going to do a full audit of every loan over $2 million," Mnuchin said. "This was a program designed for small businesses. It was not a program that was designed for public companies that had liquidity." Read more at CNBC.

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Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.