Trump's watchdog for COVID-19 stimulus cash allowed millions to go to China-backed businesses

President Donald Trump tried to wage war against former Vice President Joe Biden for being too close to China, but it was revealed Sunday that the Trump administration's appointees allowed supplemental money from the Paycheck Protection Program to be given to China-backed businesses in the United States.

The New York Times cited a study from Horizon Advisory on the publicly available data, "$192 million to $419 million has gone to more than 125 companies that Chinese entities own or invest in. Many of the loans were quite sizable; at least 32 Chinese companies received loans worth more than $1 million, with those totaling as much as $180 million."

“The extent and nature of P.R.C.-owned, -invested and -connected entities among the P.P.P. loan recipients indicate that without appropriate policy guardrails, U.S. tax dollars intended for relief, recovery and growth of the U.S. economy — and small businesses in particular — risk supporting foreign competitors, namely China,” wrote Horizon Advisory co-founders Emily de La Bruyère and Nathan Picarsic.

Trump has blamed China for the virus, going so far as to call the virus the "Chinese Virus" or the "China Virus."

Meanwhile, Trump is running ads saying that he's been tough on China, though it's unclear how giving them hundreds of millions of dollars in stimulus meant for Americans does that.

Read the full report.