A recent press release from Sen. Jeanne Shaheen's office provides a great example of what ails Washington — and the national economy — these days.

Sen. Shaheen boasted last week that she has co-sponsored a bill to extend a temporary expansion of an SBA loan program. In 2010, Congress voted to briefly allow small businesses to refinance commercial mortgages with SBA 504 loans. The allowance is set to expire this fall. Shaheen wants to extend it for a year since there was a delay in getting the expansion implemented.

“By allowing small businesses to use this program for refinancing, we are giving them access to historically low interest rates and cost stability that will allow them to expand and add jobs,” Shaheen said. She added that it was necessary because “small businesses in New Hampshire need access to capital...”

That is rich coming from a senator who supports policies known to restrict access to capital for small and large businesses. For example, Shaheen voted for the Dodd-Frank bill imposing numerous new regulations on the financial industry. That bill imposed tighter lending restrictions on banks, including small banks (the kind of that give SBA 504 loans in New Hampshire) though they were not typically involved in the financial crises that prompted the bill. The result has been a restriction in lending to businesses large and small.

Shaheen is a national co-chairman of President Obama's reelection campaign. When he released his grossly irresponsible 2012 budget last year, Shaheen called it “responsible.” But Obama's massive debt is making it harder for the private sector to find needed capital. Last month the Congressional Budget Office concluded that Obama's budget will reduce U.S. economic output in the long run as the government borrows money that otherwise would be available to the private sector for job creation.

For every small business owner who gets a loan in the next year from Shaheen's expansion of this tiny lending program, untold thousands are prevented from hiring because of the foolish policies she supports.