    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book I)]
    [January 9, 2004]
    [Pages 34-39]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks in a Discussion With Women Small-Business Owners
    January 9, 2004

        The President. Thank you all. Thank you, Mr. Secretary. You wrote that--you read that just like I wrote it.
    [Laughter] It's good to be here at the Commerce Department. After all,
    that's what we're here to discuss, is commerce and jobs and how to keep
    the entrepreneurial spirit strong in America.
        Let me start off by saying, first of all, thank you all for coming.
    We're going to have an interesting discussion about what it means to own
    your own business and risk capital and employ people, what it takes to
    be a businessowner. And we've got five really smart, capable women who
    are running their own businesses. Before we get to this discussion,
    though, I want to say I'm really optimistic about the future of our
    Nation's economy. This economy is strong, and it is getting stronger.
        I'm optimistic for one reason, because I just spent a little bit of
    time with five people who are on the frontline of hiring. Their optimism
    was really evident, as I think you'll soon hear. Secondly, I'm
    optimistic because I see things happening. Unemployment dropped today to
    5.7 percent. That's not good enough. We want more people still working.
    But nevertheless, it is a positive sign that the economy is getting
    better.
        I see the manufacturing orders are up dramatically. I know the
    productivity is high in America. Home construction is strong. All the
    signs in our economy is--are very strong. And that's positive for
    somebody who might be wondering about whether he or she is going to find
    a job.
        Secondly, I know what we have overcome in this country. I mean, this
    economy has got to be pretty darn strong to have come through what this
    Nation has come through. Just very quickly, in the beginning of 2001,
    the country was entering into a recession. I'm sure that affected you
    all. Recession, by the way, is when there is negative growth for three
    quarters, when things aren't going well for three consecutive quarters.
    That's a long period of time if you own your own business. It's a long
    period of time if you're looking for a job, by the way.
        Then, all of a sudden, as the economy was getting better, the enemy
    hit us. And make no mistake about it, the attack of September the 11th
    affected not only our national psyche; it affected the economy. It hurt.
    It hurt people who were thinking about risking capital. It made it hard
    for people to find a job.
        As well we had a problem that fall when it turned out some of our
    corporate citizens failed to live up to the responsibilities of
    leadership. They didn't tell the truth to their shareholders and their
    employees. That affected the psyche of the American investor. You know,
    capitalism is only as strong as the integrity of the people involved in
    the process. And these leaders will tell you that you've got to be open

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    with your employees. Otherwise, they're not going to work for you very
    hard. In this case, these corporate criminals had a negative effect on
    the country.
        And then, of course, I made some tough decisions about how to secure
    America and keep the peace by spreading freedom, and we marched to war.
    It is not conducive to economic growth to see on your TV screens,
    ``America is marching to war.'' It's not a very positive, optimistic
    message to hear if you're thinking about risking capital. Who wants to
    take risk when we're marching to war?
        Now we're marching to peace, and people feel more comfortable about
    making a risky investment. We've overcome a lot. And I'm optimistic
    because not only do I talk to people who are optimistic all the time;
    I'm optimistic because I recognized what this country has been through.
    It really speaks to the entrepreneurial spirit and ingenuity of the
    American people, is what I'm talking about. This is a fabulous country.
        The system says if you work hard, you get rewarded. You can own your
    own business, hopefully without a lot of Government interference.
    Speaking about Government interference, we made a conscious decision to
    make Government less intrusive into the pocketbooks of the American
    people in order to effect economic growth. You might remember we went to
    the Congress, not only once but three different times, to effect real,
    substantial tax relief, tax relief which left more money in the pockets
    of the working people, tax relief which encouraged spending and saving
    and investment.
        You see, we cut the taxes on everybody. We didn't try to pick and
    choose who got the tax relief. Our attitude was, if you pay taxes, you
    ought to get relief. It ought to be fair and simple to understand. And
    by the way, the tax relief had a significant impact on the
    entrepreneurial spirit of America because a lot of people who own their
    own small business pay taxes at the individual income-tax rate. They're
    what you'll hear as a Subchapter S corp or a sole proprietorship. And so
    when you cut the taxes on the individuals, you're really cutting the
    taxes on business, small businesses. And after all, that's important,
    because most small businesses--or small businesses create the most new
    jobs. Seventy percent of new jobs are created by small-business owners
    and entrepreneurs. The tax relief was important.
        We had incentives in there for people trying to raise a family by
    raising the child credit. We reduced the marriage penalty. Heck, we want
    a Tax Code that encourages marriage, not discourages marriage. It
    doesn't make any sense to say, ``If you're married, you get to pay more
    tax.''
        We gave small-business owners incentives to invest by raising the
    deductibility limits. And I think you'll hear some discussion of that
    today. We reduced taxes on dividends and capital gains, which was
    particularly important for retired citizens who rely upon dividend
    income to--in their latter years.
        So we did a lot. We've done a lot. And I'm telling you, the tax
    relief came at the right time and made a big difference for economic
    growth.
        There's more to do. First of all, every one of these business
    leaders and owners will tell you that if there's uncertainty in the Tax
    Code, it will make it difficult for them to plan for the future.
    Businessowners like certainty. They want to know what the rules are.
    Much of the tax relief I described goes away soon. Congress passed the
    tax relief, but they didn't make it permanent. Job creation is vital.
    Permanency in the Tax Code will mean more job creation. Congress must
    make every part of the tax package permanent.
        These business leaders will tell you, health care costs are rising
    and are difficult to manage. We need association health care plans to
    allow small businesses to pool the risk across jurisdictional
    boundaries. Congress must act. We need medical liability

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    reform. Frivolous lawsuits drive up the costs of health care. They
    affect the budgets of these small businesses. They also affect the
    Federal budget. I mean, if you think about what frivolous lawsuits do to
    the cost of Medicare and Medicaid and veterans' health benefits, you
    understand what I'm talking about. I mean, it's an enormous cost to the
    Federal budget. We got a good bill out of the House. The medical
    liability bill is stuck in the Senate. We need tort reform there; we
    need class action reform; we need asbestos reform if we expect this
    economy to continue to grow.
        We need an energy policy. Congress needs to give me an energy bill.
    I mean, it's hard for businesses to plan, particularly in the
    manufacturing sector, if you're wondering where you're going to get your
    next watt of energy. And so we need an energy bill. Congress needs to
    act. Congress needs to join this administration in listening to the
    voices of these entrepreneurs to figure out how to keep a progrowth
    agenda on the forefront. So long as anybody is looking for a job in
    America, this administration is going to be promoting a pro-growth, pro-
    entrepreneurial agenda.
        And I'm honored to be joined by entrepreneurs, strong, strong women
    who have taken the lead in their businesses and are providing a great
    service to our country. They're not only providing a wonderful example
    for people who are wondering whether or not I can own my own company but
    whether--but providing the service of hiring people and keeping them at
    work and caring about their employees.
        I'm going to start off by Nancy Connolly.
    She is the president and CEO of Lasertone Corporation, Littleton,
    Massachusetts. Welcome.

    [At this point, Nancy Connolly made brief remarks.]

        The President. Yes, see, Nancy hires 20--
    there's a lot of companies the size of Nancy's around the country that
    have got this sense of optimism. I mean it's--I don't think we would
    have had Nancy sitting here 2 years ago saying, ``Gosh, I look forward
    to hiring 20.'' I suspect she might have been saying, ``I hope to keep
    the 70.'' A lot of small businesses were just hanging on to what they
    had during tough economic times. And now this leader and this
    entrepreneur are saying, ``20 minimum,'' it sounded like to me. And
    that's how this economy works. It's very important for people to
    understand it's the cumulative effect of many, many hirings that take
    place on a daily basis, particularly in the small-business sector, that
    affect economic growth and vitality.
        Thank you for doing what you're doing.
        Catherine, tell us about yourself and
    your business, Knowledge Information Solutions.

    [Catherine Giordano, president and chief executive officer, Knowledge
    Information Solutions, Inc., Virginia Beach, VA, made brief remarks.]

        The President. I'm glad you're here, Catherine, thanks. One of the things I think is very
    interesting for people to understand that Catherine just said--she said
    the tax breaks that we focused for small-business owners caused her to
    buy new equipment and new software. Well, somebody has to make that
    equipment, and somebody has to design that software and sell it. So my
    point is, is that it's important for our American citizens to understand
    the ripple effect of good tax policy. Good tax policy encourages an
    owner to make a decision. That decision then makes it more likely
    somebody else is going to find a job who will provide--in the company
    that provides the product--in Catherine's case, equipment and hardware.
        It's very important that this incentive stay in place because it
    is--you just heard one example of the decisionmaking process that takes
    place as a result of good tax policy. If the tax policy--if Congress
    lets this lapse, the ability to deduct to $100,000 of capital equipment,
    it would then cause her to make different decisions in the out-years.

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    And so the Congress needs to be mindful of what tax policy does to the
    decisionmakers, the job creators, people like Catherine who made a rational decision based upon good
    policy.
        It's my honor to welcome right now--why don't we go with Sharon
    Evans. Sharon is the CEO of CFJ Manufacturing,
    Fort Worth, Texas.

    [Sharon Evans made brief remarks, concluding by saying that she
    anticipated 25-percent growth next year, which she believed was due to
    tax benefits.]

        The President. I disagree. I think it's related to vision and hard
    work and the Texas spirit. The tax relief helped, but none of these
    women should discount their courage and their vision and their
    willingness to take risk and to make wise decisions.
        Ms. Evans. I do have to commend you too, as
    well as--we utilize and we are a certified women-owned business, and
    your support of women in business has increased my customer base, which
    has, in fact, grown my business as well.
        The President. Yes, I think it's very important--what she's talking about is contracting. For example, at the
    Federal Government, we ought to bust these contracts down to smaller
    sizes. The role of contracting at the Federal level--the proper role of
    contracting obviously is to get good service for the Government but at
    the same time have the added dividend of enhancing the entrepreneurial
    spirit, is encouraging small-business ownership, is to really achieve
    what we want to achieve, and that is to expand the ownership society in
    America.
        And by the way, the role of Government is not to create wealth but
    the environment in which the entrepreneur can flourish. Make no mistake
    about it, the role of Government is to create the architecture in which
    people are willing to take risk and make choice. But that doesn't happen
    unless somebody's got a good idea, works hard, dreams big, treats their
    employees with respect, and is capable. So thank you for giving
    Government the credit, but we don't deserve it.
        Let me call upon Maria Coakley David. She is the CFO of C.J. Coakley, Inc., right here in
    Falls Church, Virginia. Thanks for coming, Maria. And thank you for the
    hat.

    [Maria Coakley David made brief remarks.]

        The President. Well, let me talk about job hiring, particularly in
    the construction field. It's very important for these companies to
    understand who they're hiring. I'm excited about the fact that you're
    expanding your job base. I just want to make sure that you stay legal in
    your hiring practice. And we've got a problem here----
        Ms. Coakley David. It's a big
    concern as well for us, and I appreciate you bringing that up.
        The President. It's got to be a big concern. Well, I'm talking about
    this immigration issue that I brought up. My attitude is, any time an
    employer can't find an American worker to do the job, that--in this
    case, she ought to be able to hire a
    willing foreign worker, so long as that foreign worker has got a--we're
    going to issue a new card, a temporary-worker card.
        I don't like the idea of having an undocumented economy in the
    greatest country on the face of the Earth, where people walk miles
    across deserts at the hands of sometimes these ``coyote'' border
    smugglers who treat these people inhumanely. They get into our society.
    They're doing work, but they're doing work in an undocumented way, not
    aboveboard but below the surface. They can get exploited and have no
    recourse. And it's just flat wrong in America. And we ought to recognize
    the system hasn't worked.
        And so I proposed a plan that is a worker plan. It is not an
    automatic path to citizenship, what they call amnesty. It is a plan that
    recognizes reality in a commonsense way, so that when Maria's company starts expanding and she can't find
    somebody to lay tar on a hot August day and somebody

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    else wants to because they've got a family to feed, she can find this
    person, and the person will show up to work. And by the way, that person
    ought to be able to go back to his or her family without being harassed,
    to be able to take money home, which is what they're trying to do.
        So this is a commonsense plan. It makes eminent sense. It recognizes
    the reality of today's workplace. We want our employers to be aggressive
    at hiring people, but we don't want them breaking the law. And we've got
    to recognize, in this society, there are just simply some jobs that are
    not being filled by American citizens.
        Ms. Coakley David. You're correct,
    and it is definitely a big concern for our company. We probably have 70
    percent Hispanic workforce. We've recently hired a bilingual
    receptionist to help us communicate effectively. We have a lot of our
    newsletters translated in Spanish. And we do have to face the facts, and
    we would greatly benefit from your plan.
        The President. Yes, this is important. The other thing what
    she's faced with--first of all, the fact
    that you've got a Hispanic workforce means you're doing well. These are
    fine people, we know well in Texas. They're great people--great people.
        But there's a lot of false documentation. What kind of society is it
    where the system allows for false documentation, falsifying these
    different papers so Maria is not sure
    whether or not she's dealing with somebody she ought to be dealing with?
    We need to make this aboveboard. And by the way, it is humane to treat
    people with respect, citizen or not citizen. We want to treat people
    with the utmost respect in this country. This is America. It's the
    greatest country on the face of the Earth. We're not giving special
    privilege. They don't get to butt in line where somebody who wants to go
    through the process in a legal way. We're just recognizing reality in a
    commonsensical way. It's the right thing to do.

    [Ms. Coakley David made additional remarks.]

        The President. You know, one of the most meaningful things that's
    happened to me since I've been the Governor--the President--Governor--
    President. [Laughter] Oops--[laughter]--ex-Governor. I went to Bethesda
    Naval Hospital to give a fellow a Purple Heart, and at the same moment watched him--get a Purple
    Heart for action in Iraq--and at that same--right after I gave him the
    Purple Heart, he was sworn in as a citizen of the United States, a
    Mexican citizen now a United States citizen.
        It's a pretty special country, isn't it, where people are willing to
    come not only to work to provide for their families but to wear this
    Nation's uniform and to go into harm's way for our peace and security.
    And Americans have got to recognize how special America is and how lucky
    we are to be Americans in this country and how a lot of really decent
    people would like to join us. We've just got to make sure the system is
    orderly and fair and meets national objectives.
        Lurita--Lurita Doan is with us. She is the
    president and CEO of New Technology Management in Reston, Virginia.
    Welcome.

    [Lurita Doan made brief remarks.]

        The President. I'm here to thank you all. I think the--I hope you
    come away with the same sense of optimism I do about the future of this
    country when you hear these five women speak. I mean, this is a country
    which speaks to five entrepreneurs here on the stage and says, ``Dream
    big and go for it. Live your dream.'' Can you imagine a country where a
    woman like Lurita walks in to Kinko's and says,
    ``I think I'll start a business by printing my first business card,''
    and here she is, 13 years later, speaking to the Nation about a business
    which is thriving and is going to hire 75 new people.
        It's a fabulous country, where people can dream big dreams and
    people can risk--take risk and achieve their dreams through

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    hard work, clear vision, and a good idea. It's hard to be a small-
    business owner, particularly in hard times. It's easier when the whole
    economy is growing, but it's even hard then. It's hard to make the right
    decisions. But obviously, I'm surrounded by success, people who have
    been able to realize their dreams and accomplish what is not easy to
    accomplish.
        Government can help, but we can't make these women smart; we can't
    make them dream; we can't make them compassionate. These are choices
    they've made. And our job is to stand with them and to serve as a wind
    at their back as they provide not only valuable goods and services but,
    more importantly for me right now and for the country, is to provide a
    chance for somebody to find work--find work so they can fulfill their
    obligations as a mom or a dad.
        I want to thank you all for joining us. Thank you for being great
    Americans. I appreciate you helping me to explain how our economy works
    and why we should be optimistic about our future. May God bless your
    endeavors and God bless you all. May God continue to bless our great
    country. Thank you very much.

    Note: The discussion began at 10:45 a.m. at the Department of Commerce.
    In his remarks, the President referred to Secretary of Commerce Donald
    L. Evans, who introduced the President.