Nancy Marshall-Genzer

The new SBA policy gets rid of an exception the agency granted just last December that allowed businesses to apply for the loans if up to 5% of their owners were non-citizens or U.S.

citizens living abroad.

Now, green card holders with permanent residency will not qualify for these loans.

The SBA says it's committed to driving economic growth and job creation for American citizens, but the small business advocacy group Small Business Majority says the new policy will, quote, limit the growth of small businesses and jobs throughout the United States, adding that immigrants are twice as likely to start a business as native-born Americans.

I'm Nancy Marshall-Genzer for Marketplace.

Evan Warsh has already worked as a Fed governor.

He played a key role in helping the Fed create bailout plans for faltering financial giants during the financial crisis.

And he earned a reputation as an inflation hawk, someone who prefers higher interest rates to keep inflation in check.

Now he thinks the Fed should cut rates.

Here he is on CNBC back in July.

The AI is going to make almost everything cost less.

And the U.S.

can be a big winner.

Warsh says productivity gains from AI will tamp down inflation so the Fed can and should cut rates to keep the AI boom going.

Claudia Somm is chief economist at New Century Advisors.

She's also a former Fed economist.

She worked with Warsh when he was there.

She believes Warsh would be independent in favor of raising rates in the future if that were appropriate because Fed chairs can agree with the president at first.

But then once the Fed chair is put in place, then the world could change.

And then you have to back up and the Fed chair could go in a different direction.