We The People . . .
Could there possibly be a more beautiful document in the secular world than the Constitution of the United States? Forged with blood at a time when The Divine Right Of Kings was still the norm, it is currently the oldest document of its type still in production. If you want to get a chill up your spine, go to If you are looking for Constitutional words to savor, "freedom" and "liberty" would have to be right up there on top of the list, followed closely by "we the people". But there are two other words many of us might not quickly list that are at once small and powerful: elect and vote, found 7 and 13 times, respectively, in the Bill of Rights alone (I counted). How blessed Americans are to be a "people" endowed with the right to "vote" for and "elect" ordinary citizens to manage the business of a political concept that Lincoln still considered an "experiment" over 70 years after the Constitution was ratified.
I like contemplating the Founders and what they did. I also spend a lot of time contemplating another group of people of whom I think the Founders would be very proud, small business owners. And lately, like most of us, I've also been thinking about politics.
Livin' la politica loca
Unless you've been in a coma for the past 3 months, you know that we are livin' la politica loca, aka the 2000 presidential primary races. For the past few weeks, and now on the cusp of Super Tuesday, small business owners, like the rest of "the people" have been sorting through all of the campaign caca to attempt to find out which candidate looks and sounds best, and then vote. I say "looks and sounds" because, let's face it, for a long time, electing a president in America has been a kind of beauty contest, focusing more on photogenics and spokesmodel capability than on character, courage, statesmanship, leadership and core convictions. Electability is more the coin of the realm than is capability.
And it's our own fault. We have been allowing Madison Avenue to manipulate our consumption behavior for years. Now, we are allowing the political spin meisters to manipulate our political behavior. I'm pretty sure Mr. Madison and the other Founders would not approve.
Small Business As A Single Issue
I've got an idea small business owners: let's fix this. Yeah, right now! You and me. There are plenty of single issue groups out there: pro-life, pro-choice, greens, gays, labor, libertarians, on and on, ad nauseam. Don't you think it's time we became a force in the political landscape?
This won't be difficult. You already know the issues that directly impact the survival and success of your business. But are you asking the candidates the hard questions about these issues? Need some help? Here are some of my hot buttons. As a small business owner, I want:
• Smaller and more efficient federal government;
• Lower marginal income tax rates;
• Lower capital gains tax rates;
• Move in the direction of privatizing Social Security;
• Abolish estate taxes;
• Less government intrusion in the marketplace, especially in the technology/Internet sectors;
• No more minimum wage increases;
• Full deductibility of health insurance costs;
• Lower interest rates.
The Numbers Support Our Message
If you don't like mine, make your own list. I'm not telling you how to think, I just want to help us get our righteous indignation up about things that affect small business. Let's look at some statistics that might surprise even some small business owners, and probably more than a few politicians. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration:
• Of ALL businesses in the U.S., 98.8% have fewer than 100 employees.
• Those with less than 20 employees represent 91.3% of ALL businesses in the U.S.
• Small businesses out-produced our big business cousins by a 56.7% to 43.3% ratio.
• In the area of employment, the ratio is similar to production: 56.5% of all employees work for small businesses, while 43.5% work for big business. I predict this ratio will widen in the years ahead.
• There are literally tens of millions of small businesses in the U.S., from 1 person shops that started yesterday at a kitchen table, to larger operations on track to go public (many of which started a few years ago at a kitchen table).
What's Good For Small Business Is Good For America
Small business owners, let's stop thinking of ourselves as being part of the Democrat Party or the Republican Party. Let's start thinking about the Small Business Party. We have a very powerful message: The U.S. economy flourishes as a result of good small business government policy, and is harmed by bad small business government policy. With the supporting numbers above, it's no leap of logic to see that what's good for small business is good for America.
If I've made our case, why don't we hear more DIRECT references to helping small businesses from ANY of the candidates? It's because they are too busy fighting over those other issues that merely have the advantage of coming in higher in the polls. Well, poll results are just numbers based on answers to specific questions. Small business needs to influence what questions are being asked.
Even though small business has created virtually all of the jobs in the past decade, in the last three, count them, three State Of The Union speeches, the President used the words "small business" once (I counted). Folks, we don't have a message problem. The small business message is valid. We have a PR problem.
There are a number of good folks out there talking to politicians and candidates on our behalf, the Small Business Survival Committee (SBSC), and the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), to mention two that I work closely with. But they can't do it by themselves. We have to hold up our end by:
1. Making our issues known.
2. Pressing the candidates on small business issues and demanding to know where they stand.
3. Knowing a candidate's track record on small business, and either congratulating them, or calling them on that record. There are several websites where you can find elected officials' small business voting record. Here are two: Small Business Rules Hey, it could happen! Write this on a rock... Small business is good for America. "Vote" for and "Elect" those who are, or will be, good for small business. It's a plan that needs to come together. I think the Founders would agree. Frankly, I think "We the people" owe it to them.
I got my crystal ball out, dusted it off, and looked into the future. I saw a calendar and it said February, 2048. Then I saw a button. It was a campaign button and it said, "Jackie Jefferson for President". I could just barely make out the party's logo. Looked like SBP. Could it stand for "Small Business Party"? Nice ring, don't you think?
