Maine Senate candidate Sara Gideon’s husband directly benefited from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) even as the Democrat railed against Sen. Susan Collins (R., Maine) for supporting the small business relief fund.
Gideon, who serves as the state House speaker, has frequently criticized the PPP in the last few months, accusing Collins of creating a fund that bails out large corporations but abandons small businesses. What Gideon did not say in her PPP attack ads—one of which earned three out of four Pinocchios from fact-checkers—was that her husband’s law firm received between $1 to $2 million in financial assistance from the fund.
Berman & Simmons, a personal injury law firm, cashed in on the PPP loans on April 6, according to federal data released by the Small Business Administration on Monday. Benjamin Gideon, husband to Sara Gideon, benefited from the program—he serves as a partner at the law firm and owns a $250,000 to $500,000 stake in it, according to Senate disclosures. The firm did not respond to requests for comment.
The lawyers at Berman & Simmons are major donors to Gideon, contributing more than $33,000 in total to her campaign during the 2020 election cycle. Managing director Craig Bramley sent $5,600 to the campaign, while Jack Simmons, the namesake for the firm, gave $2,800.
Continue reading at the Washington Free Beacon.
