Republicans keep saying that small businesses are the job creators. That’s actually true, but the problem is that when Republicans say small business, they mean Koch Industries. General Electric, BP, Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, etc. To make matters worse, Republicans have blocked fixing a loophole in years past that diverts contracts intended for small business to huge corporations, who outsource the jobs that should be created here, costing Main Street America millions of jobs and $billions in economic activity.
The indications that we are heading toward another recession are crystal clear. Markets are plunging, unemployment is soaring and investors, businesses and the general public are losing faith in Washington’s ability to stimulate the economy. However, a bill aimed at directing federal infrastructure spending to the middle class could change everything.
The Fairness and Transparency in Contracting Act is a very simple bill that will close loopholes and end fraud and abuse in federal small business contracting programs. The legislation focuses on ending the diversion of federal small business contracts to large businesses, a problem preventing the creation of upwards of 1.8 million new jobs. Specifically, the bill targets ambiguous provisions within the Small Business Act of 1953 that have allowed large publicly traded and foreign-owned companies to qualify as small businesses and receive federal small business contracts. Representative Hank Johnson (D-GA-04) is expected to introduce the bill this year.
The reason this bill is so powerful is because of the job creating potential of the small business community. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, small businesses create 90 percent of all net new jobs. If passed, this bill would redirect existing federal infrastructure spending to our nation’s chief job creators, providing them with the needed demand to hire employees and expand business. Existing federal infrastructure spending means deficit-neutral, requiring no new taxes and no new spending. Moreover, this is a permanent solution, not the usual one-shot-deal that tends to increase the deficit and has not actually worked.
Because of fraud, abuse, loopholes and lack of oversight of federal small business contracting programs, hundreds of billions of dollars in federal small business contracts are actually awarded to large, publicly traded and foreign-owned companies. During fiscal year 2010 alone, the government’s data indicated that more than $175 million in federal small business contracts was awarded to Lockheed Martin. I think most Americans can agree that Lockheed Martin, a company with more than 125,000 employees and more than $45 billion in annual revenue, is not a small business. This happens while small businesses are forced to close their doors and millions of Americans lose their jobs… [emphasis added]
Inserted from <Huffington Post>
Needless to say, Republicans will fight this one tooth and nail. Giving contracts intended for small businesses to small businesses runs completely counter to Republican economic policy. Keeping these contracts diverted to giant corporations that outsource jobs has been an ongoing victory in the the Republican war against the poor and middle classes. It’s a fight worth having, because it clearly demonstrated how Republicans represent millionaires, billionaires, and corporate criminals, NOT YOU!
18 Responses to “Huge corporations are not small businesses”
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TomCat,
That sounds like an outstanding bill and one that every true public servant should support and pass. However, since most Republicans today are corporate servants rather than public servants, they will undoubtedly kill it in the House. The solution to voters is simple: next election, throw out enough obstructionist Republicans and destructive teabaggers in both chambers and then reintroduce and pass it with new and increased cooperative Democratic majorities!
Jack, that’s the only way I see to make progress.
Perfectly simple. But what do Americans do until then? Michael Moore commented on the Occupation of Wall Street by saying that rebellion is percolating just under the surface. 13 months until 2012 is a long time to wait.
We pray it does not turn violent before then.
The LARGE Corporations have SWALLOWED small business! Small business is too ‘risky’ for banks…they all want you to PROVE you make a million b/4 they’ll help. Cities have zoned out small business start-ups by further separating business areas from residential….as MUCH as the RIGHT complains about ‘big government’ they help control the middle class with regulations on the little guy…just like taxation! The BIGGER they are, the LESS they pay!
Zada, I agree. Many do not realize that the majority of regulations are “barriers to entry”, rules set up to protect the giant corporations from competition. Fewer regulations esist to safeguard Americans, Those are the ones Republicans oppose.
Large corps spin off individual departments as small businesses that’s how they get the tax breaks. I’m hoping this bill passes for the sake of the truly small businesses.
Thanks Blue. That is indeed the most common way they do it.
Seems as tho any bill that really helps- gets deep sixed by the paid Hos now in the house— who want to pour money into the “job creating’ corporations , thus enabling them to outsource even faster– seems pretty simple–
And the correct response is, “Thanks RepubliCorp!”
It would be refreshing to see the teaboogers voted out – I don’t trust a country that holds religion more important than governance, of course I’m an atheist so it’s doubly upsetting to watch this country being sabotaged by reiligious zealots, it’s beginning to mirror Israel in obstructing peace in the world and while Israel’s economy is one of the best, it has not produced any love for it from me or most of the world! Let’s find some politicians who are motivated by compassion and some of the values that the Sermon on the Mount proposes withhout being freaks of “religulousness”! I’ll be writing Schumer and Gillebrand to help forward Johnson’s bill! Thanks.
Thanks Lee, but I don’t see how religion applies to this subject.
I’m totally with everyone on this – large corps shouldn’t be getting this money that was targeted for small business owners.
Lisa, are you OK? You have been way missed around here!
Fairness and Transparency in Contracting Act is a very simple bill that will close loopholes and end fraud and abuse in federal small business contracting programs. But first it has to clear the House and the Senate, which given the numbers and attitude in the House . . . well let’s just say that a snowball has a better chance in hell!
As Jack posted “. . . The solution to voters is simple: next election, throw out enough obstructionist Republicans and destructive teabaggers in both chambers and then reintroduce and pass it with new and increased cooperative Democratic majorities!”
Perfectly simple. But what do Americans do until then? Michael Moore commented on the Occupation of Wall Street by saying that rebellion is percolating just under the surface. 13 months until 2012 is a long time to wait.
See reply above. 🙂
If they would revise the definition of Small Business in the IRS Tax Code, none of the huge corporations would be considered as small businesses anymore.
It doesn’t work that way. They have to use the definition in the Bill itself.