Bush Dismantles Economic Programs for Small Business as Economy Continues Downward Spiral

Ninety-eight percent of all companies in the United States have less than 100 employees. Twenty-seven million firms fall into the category of small business, and small businesses employ 56 percent of our nation's population. These companies are responsible for over 90 percent of the new jobs, over 90 percent of U.S. exports and over 90 percent of innovation in American business. Congress realized America's small businesses were the heart and soul of our nation's economy when they passed the Small Business Act in 1953.

Our nation is in the midst of one of the most dramatic economic downturns in modern history. More than ever, America's 27 million small businesses need the economic benefits the Small Business Act was designed to provide.

None of this seems to matter to President George W. Bush. Although President Bush regularly panders to small businesses in his speeches, his policies paint a different picture. At the same time that President Bush backed the $700 billion dollar Wall Street bailout, he continued to dismantle existing federal programs designed to assist American small businesses.

During his two terms, President Bush has systematically dismantled each and every program established under the Small Business Act to assist American small businesses, especially those firms owned by women, minorities and veterans.

President Bush's anti-small business policies began during his first week as president. The first thing he did to dismantle America's small business programs was to remove the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) from the President's Cabinet. Then he began to cut the SBA's budget and staffing more than any other federal agency.

Since 2003, over a dozen federal investigations have been released, which have all found rampant and government-wide fraud, abuse, loopholes and a blatant lack of proper oversight in federal small business contracting programs. Several of the investigations found that the Bush Administration has diverted billions of dollars in federal small business contracts to many of the largest corporations in the world.

Current federal law requires that a minimum of 23 percent of the total value of all federal contracts and subcontracts be awarded to small businesses. However, every year the federal government awards billions of dollars in small business contracts to some of the largest corporations in the U.S. and Europe.

Report 5-15 from the SBA Office of Inspector General states, "One of the most important challenges facing the SBA and the entire Federal Government today is that large businesses are receiving small business procurement awards and agencies are receiving credit for these awards."

Several Bush officials have privately acknowledged that at least 50 percent of all federal small business contracts or about $70 billion a year actually go to corporate giants. Based on information obtained in a series of successful Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuits filed against the Bush Administration, the American Small Business League (ASBL) estimates legitimate small businesses are being cheated out of over $100 billon each year.

Last year, the Bush Administration adopted a policy that will allow Fortune 500 firms to continue to receive government small business contracts until 2012. (http://www.asbl.com/showmedia.php?id=592)

Last month, Bush officials began to dismantle one of the government's only programs to assist minority-owned firms, the Small Disadvantaged Business contracting program.

Senator McCain has never objected to any of the Bush Administration's anti-small business policies. During more than two years of campaigning, not once has Senator McCain mentioned his intention to restore America's small business programs. If Senator John McCain is elected president, he will likely finish what Bush started and completely dismantle all federal programs designed to assist American small businesses.

Comments

[ebanks84]

EVERYBODY MUST READ THIS LETTER, PLEASE:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/10/21/nyt-mag-lifts-curtain-on_n_136632.html

This is the REAL MCCAIN talking. See him for who he truly is!

[ebanks84]

WRONG LINK ABOVE, SORRY: THIS IS THE RIGHT ONE!

EVERYBODY MUST SEE THIS LINK:

http://letters.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/06/florida/view/?show=all

THIS IS THE REAL MCCAIN. THIS IS WHO YOU WILL VOTE INTO OFFICE. SEE HIM AND HEAR HIM OUT OF HIS OWN MOUTH!

[IndyReader]

Holy Smoke! This is something the Dems MUST jump on.

[lisakaz2]

He wants everyone to work for Booo$hco-friendly places, thereby controlling us. It's called corporatism for a reason.

[TamPhi]

I'm pretty sure helping small businesses is a Socialist value. "Real" Americans hate small business...and hummus...but most of all, real Americans hate Liberals. Right, Sarah?

[WindmillSlayer]

Hmmm.... most of our armed forces are overseas fighting a trumped up war, our economy is tanking, unemployment is up along with foreclosures and homelessness, and wall st and the banks are becoming nationalized. Our media are filled with fear mongers foisting propaganda to convince us the democratic party is filled with terrorists and "the other" kind of people in an effort to convince us to vote the "right" way for JM and SP.

Control the resources, control the money, control the people: Those were key operating procedures for Stalin's Russia and Hitler's Germany.

[LAB11]

McSame votes Bush! Just Say No to McBush!

[Teeninchee]

WoW! Wake up Joey...you're about to have a ni ght ma re!

[klo]

So once Joe buys that plumbing business, he's going to have a hard time thanks to Mr. Bush and his supporters, including Mr. McCain.

Maybe someone should tell Joe he's not going to get any assist from the feds on this one.

[LHoney]

Well ya know it's harder to create all of these monopolies when there is all these pesky small businesses around!

[lilsongbird101]

That's Bush! Always lookin out for his own interests "big Oil"
Thanks for this informative article

[wendynyc]

Not very astonishing at all. The only agenda Bush and Cheney had was to get into the White House and help Big OIL.

All our other industries are in trouble and definitely need federal and state support. In countries all over the world including Germany, Japan, Korea and China, the government helps industry develop innovative technologies as well as gives them structural support to help them grow and survive.

[walk0nwalls]

I think I smashed my head into my keyboard so hard the "H" key is stuck to my forehead.

[Imago]

Oh, man, I identify!!!!