THE PRESIDENT: Christine, thanks for the kind words, thank you for
being an entrepreneur who was encouraging to your fellow workers to
serve their country. You represent a lot of bosses across this country
who encouraged the Reservists or the Guard who made sure there was a
job available when they came home and, at the same time, supported
their family. And I want to thank you very much for that.
I want to welcome you all to the Rose Garden. It is a beautiful
day. It's a beautiful day for our country, too. We've got troops
still fighting in Iraq, and our nation takes great pride in the men and
women who wear our country's uniform and who sacrifice for security and
peace. (Applause.) The world has seen their skill and their courage
and their humanity. They bring security to our country and, at the
same time, bring freedom to the Iraqi people. (Applause.)
I appreciate the chance to meet with small business leaders from
around our country to discuss the challenges facing our economy. The
small business folks in America, the entrepreneurs represent one of the
great strengths of this country: the spirit of free enterprise, the
willingness to take risks, the hard work required to move this economy
forward.
Small business owners and employees understand that this economy
has a great deal of unmet potential. The American people have all the
talent to meet that potential, and that's why I'm so optimistic about
the future for our economy.
The nation needs quick action by our Congress on a pro-growth
economic package. We need tax relief totaling at least $550 billion to
make sure our economy grows. (Applause.) And American workers and
American businesses need every bit of that relief now so that people
who want to find a job can find one, so that people that are looking
for work are able to put food on the table for their families.
I want to thank Christine for coming. I appreciate the fact that
she is the CEO of her own business. We just had a roundtable
discussion in the Roosevelt Room, and one of the things I love --
told the folks there I loved about America was the fact that somebody
can own their own business, that ours is an ownership society. I think
that's one of things that makes America so unique is the
entrepreneurial spirit and the drive by people from all walks of life
to start their own business, succeed with their own business. And at
the same time, it's that drive that makes it likely somebody is going
to find work.
I appreciate Karla Aaron, who's with us, as well, Hialeah Metal
Spinning from South Florida. And I want to thank Tim Barrett who is
the owner of Wood World. Tim said he's got -- he's about as small a
business unit as you can get. He's got four employees. I said, well
it's four times bigger than the smallest. (Laughter.) And I
appreciate Frank Fillmore as the president of the Fillmore Group.
Thank you all for standing up here, as well.
Steve Anderson was with us today, who is the head of the National
Restaurant Association. His association represents all kinds of
entrepreneurs. The restaurant industry is a great place for people to
get their start in achieving the American Dream.
Sal Gomez was here representing the Denver Hispanic Chamber of
Commerce. The most interesting statistics about the entrepreneurial
spirit is the number of Hispanic small businesses that are flourishing
in our country. It's one of the great tributes to America and our open
society.
I appreciate so very much Tom Donohue, who is the head of the U.S.
Chamber, for joining us today. Jerry Jasinowski is the head of the
National Association of Manufacturers is with us. Karen Kerrigan is
the Small Business Survival Committee -- that's a pretty good name.
(Laughter.) Tom Musser is the National Federation of Independent
Businesses, NFIB. And Terry Neese is Women Impacting Public Policy,
joined us at our discussion in the Roosevelt Room. Bill Parsley of
Carswell Distributing Company. Dirk Van Dongen, who is my good buddy,
who represents the National Association of Wholesaler Distributors.
And Melanie Sabelhaus, who represents the Small Business
Administration. We had a great discussion. I want to thank you all
for joining us there and I appreciate everybody else coming today, as
well.
On the first day of the new Congress more than three months ago, I
spoke to the business leaders in Chicago, Illinois. I described two
great and immediate tasks facing our country: first, to meet the
dangers to America wherever they gather; and, secondly, to achieve a
vigorous and growing economy. Those remain the highest priorities of
my administration. And there's no doubt we're going to meet those
priorities.
This government is acting to protect the American people from the
threats of a new era. In Iraq, the regime of Saddam Hussein is no
more. (Applause.) A month ago -- one month ago -- that country
was a prison to its people, a haven for terrorists, an arsenal of
weapons that endangered the world. Today, the world is safer. The
terrorists have lost an ally. The Iraqi people are regaining control
of their own destiny. These are good days in the history of freedom.
(Applause.)
Our victory in Iraq is certain, but it is not complete.
Centralized power of the dictator has ended -- yet, in parts of Iraq,
desperate and dangerous elements remain. Forces of our coalition will
engage these enemies until they surrender or until they're destroyed.
(Applause.) We have waged this war with determination and with clarity
of purpose. And we will see it through until the job is done.
As we press on to liberate every corner of Iraq, we are beginning
the difficult work of helping Iraqis to build a free and stable
country. The immediate tasks involve establishing order, as well as
delivering food and water and medicines. We'll help Iraqis to restore
electrical power and other basic services. We'll help destroy the
former regime's weapons of mass destruction. We'll help the Iraqi
people to establish a just and representative government, which
respects human rights and adheres to the rule of law. These tasks will
take effort, and these tasks will take time. But I have faith in the
Iraqi people, and I believe that a free Iraq can be an example of
reform and progress to all the Middle East. (Applause.)
Our victory in Iraq will be a crucial advance in the war against
terror. Yet, the war on terror continues. Our nation is still
threatened by determined and resourceful enemies. The proliferation of
weapons of mass destruction remains a danger to the civilized world.
Yet from the very day our country was attacked, we have sent a clear
message to all who would threaten us, and our friends, and our allies.
The United States of America, and our coalition, will defend
ourselves. When we make a pledge, we mean it. We keep our word; and
what we begin, we will finish. (Applause.)
Another great priority of the government is to encourage prosperity
and the creation of jobs for all who seek them. Here in Washington,
we're now determining the size and the shape of a package to promote
growth in jobs. It's not "if" we have a package, it's how big will the
package be. The "if" is over with. In this debate, the goal is not to
set arbitrary numbers for that package. The goal is to determine what
our economy needs, what small businesses need, what workers need. And
then to take actions necessary to meet those needs. The proposals I
announced three months ago were designed to address specific weaknesses
slowing down our economy and keeping companies from hiring new
workers. Those weaknesses remain today.
All of you know that economic and job growth will come when
consumers buy more goods and services from businesses such as your
own. And the best and fairest way to make sure Americans can do that
is to grant them immediate tax relief so they have more of their own
money to spend or save. (Applause.)
In 2001, the Congress passed broad tax reductions in income taxes.
And promised much of this tax relief for future years. With the
economy as it is, the American people need that relief right away. The
tax cuts are good enough for the American taxpayers three or five or
seven years from now, they are even better today. (Applause.)
Instead of lowering taxes little by little, the Congress should do
it all at once and give our economy the boost it needs. Instead of
gradually reducing the marriage penalty, we should do it now.
(Applause.) Instead of slowly raising the child credit from $600 to
$1,000, we should do it now. (Applause.) And we should send the extra
$400 per child to American families this year, 2003.
All together, these tax reductions will help 92 million Americans.
And a significant part of the benefit to our economy will come within
the first two years of the plan. A family of four with an income of
$40,000 would receive a 96 percent reduction in federal income taxes.
Instead of paying $1,178 per year, the family would pay $45 a year.
(Applause.) That means extra money in the family budget year after
year. That money can cover a lot of bills. That money can help
families with purchases they have been delaying. That money will be in
circulation, which will be good for our economy. (Applause.)
And this plan will help our small business sector. The benefits of
the growth plan will come from increased consumer spending and, as
importantly, from lower income tax rates on the small businesses,
themselves. (Applause.) It is important for our fellow citizens to
understand that most small businesses pay their business taxes at the
individual rates. Most small businesses are sole proprietorships, or
limited partnerships, subchapter S's.
And, therefore, when you reduce individual tax rates, you benefit
small business formation. As a matter of fact, under this plan, some
23 million small business owners will see their taxes cut, which leaves
more money for investment, more money for growth, more money for job
creation. A growing economy also needs small business investment, and
our tax code should encourage investment. Today, a small business can
deduct a maximum of $25,000 in the year in which they buy equipment.
We need to triple the amount that can be deducted in the year in which
they buy equipment. (Applause.)
So I proposed to Congress that they ought to limit -- the limit
ought to be increased to $75,000, and that limit ought to be indexed to
inflation. By doing so, we promote greater investment in machinery,
and when a small business buys a machine, it enhances their company's
productivity. As well, it means the machinery manufacturer is likely
to have more work available. More investment equals jobs, and what
we're interested in in this administration is helping people who look
for work find a job. (Applause.)
We can also promote economic growth and job creation by removing
the double tax on dividends. (Applause.) Taxing corporate income once
is fair. It is not fair for the federal government to tax the same
money twice. The burden of double taxation falls on the millions of
individuals who receive dividends. It falls especially hard on
seniors, who receive half of all dividend income.
The removal of double taxation will put more money into the hands
of investors, it would encourage more investment in American
businesses. Economists say that this plan will help our stock
markets. And since half of American families own stock, the reform
will help them save and help our economy grow.
Now, these measures were presented to the Congress in the first
week of this year. The pro-growth package was urgent in January, it's
even more urgent today. (Applause.) It is important for you all to
understand and for our fellow Americans to understand, the tax relief I
have proposed and will push for until enacted -- (applause) -- will
create 1.4 million new jobs by the end of 2004. (Applause.)
In two year's time, this nation has experienced war, a recession
and a national emergency, which has caused our government to run a
deficit. The best way to reduce the deficit is with more growth in our
economy, which means more revenues to our Treasury and less spending in
Washington, D.C. (Applause.)
I am pleased that both the House and the Senate have passed budget
resolutions that show real spending restraint. And now the Congress
must focus on a robust and effective growth package. We need at least
$550 billion in that package because the more tax relief that goes to
the American people, the more jobs we will create in this economy.
(Applause.)
The last few months have been a time of challenge for America. Our
resolve has been tested. Yet, we have the great resources of national
strength and national character to overcome every challenge we face.
Our confidence and our optimism have never wavered. We are defending
the peace of the world. We're bringing freedom to corners of the world
that haven't seen freedom in years. We're also building the prosperity
of our country.
This is a unique moment in our history, and the American people are
rising to meet it.
I want to thank each of you for your hard work. I want to thank
each of you for the faith you have shown in this country's future. May
God bless you, and may God continue to bless America. Thank you, all.
(Applause.)