An influential House Republican is accusing the Biden administration of using a key government agency to make gains in a contentious battleground state.
House Small Business Committee Chairman Roger Williams (R-Texas) is accusing the agency of acting as President Biden's “campaign arm” in Michigan.
“Earlier this month, my colleagues and I sent a letter to the SBA inquiring into their Memorandum of Understanding with the Michigan Department of State. It appears that the SBA is diverting its resources away from assisting Main Street so it can register Democrat voters,” Williams told Fox News Digital.
“Federal agencies should not act as campaign arms for their Administrations, period. Americans have a right to know the extent of the SBA's involvement, and based on further investigation, it appears even more concerning. I look forward to hearing from Administrator Guzman as to why her agency is engaging in election efforts on the taxpayer's dime.”
President Biden's re-election campaign has declared Michigan as a must-win state in the 2024 race. Biden beat former President Trump by less than 3% in 2020.
The House committee is investigating the Small Business Administration's collaboration with the Michigan Department of State on a program “to promote civic engagement and voter registration in Michigan,” according to a press release announcing the partnership.
The press release said the Michigan Department of State would “create a unique URL for the SBA to use to drive online visitors to register to vote,” and that the SBA's Michigan field office would allow state government officials to facilitate in-person voter registration at the federal agency's business outreach events. It is part of an overall effort by the Biden administration to expand access to voter registration, launched by a 2021 executive order.
House Small Business Committee's investigation found that 22 out of 25 of such outreach events have taken place in counties with the highest population of Democratic National Committee (DNC) target demographics.
Meanwhile, 11 of 15 Michigan counties that showed the largest voter registration increase over the last year have ranked highest in population of young voters and Black voters, according to the committee – two of the left's most-sought voting blocs.
Williams sent a letter last week to SBA Administrator Isabel Guzman demanding more information on whether her federal office is helping expand Biden's voter base.
“The Committee wrote to you on April 4, 2024, requesting further information about your involvement in voter registration in Michigan. You failed to provide a briefing, narrative response, or any documents by the deadline. The Committee is incredibly concerned that the Small Business Administration (SBA) improperly involved the federal government in America's electoral processes,” Williams wrote.
A new Fox News survey of Michigan registered voters finds President Biden receives 46% support to former President Trump's 49%.
The latest survey found that Trump's advantage is mainly due to a 19-point lead among men. He is also the favorite among White men without a college degree (by 33 points), rural voters (+23), voters under age 35 (+16), and White voters (+13). Plus, he is helped by a 4-point edge among independents as well as garnering a bit more support among Republicans (94%) than Biden gets among Democrats (92%).
Biden's best groups include Black voters (+56), urban voters (+27), suburban women (+21), and voters ages 65 and over (+14).
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