Saundra McDavid

As the owner of a couple of restaurants, I watch with interest each candidate’s plan for helping small businesses. This morning I watched Obama claim his plans begin with “J-O-B-S” and he will give a tax credit for every company that hires a US worker. What he didn’t say was “at what salary?” Will I get a tax break for hiring someone at $28k? Probably not. Can my restaurant afford to hire someone at $60k a year? Absolutely not. So chances are that tax break which is part of the Obama plan isn’t for my small business. Obama’s plan calls for a 90 day moratoriam on all foreclosures; $10k from your 401k without the 10% tax on early withdrawal and a Federal Reserve bailout on states and cities who have overspent and find themselves in financial troubles. This may help cities that planned to fund themselves with building permit fees, but none of these will keep open the doors of a small business struggling in this economy.

All of this will come at a cost of $60 billion. Plus Obama has suggested $115 billion in additional spending; $65 billion of which is tax savings and $50 billion is spending like stimulus checks. Originally Obama had planned on paying for this from a windfall tax on the oil companies (tax the rich and give to the poor just like Robin Hood), but since the oil price has dropped, the campaign is no longer planning on this as a revenue source. So where are we getting the money for this new stimulus package? Questions to ponder.

Coming soon, Part II. McCain’s plan. Eventually, we’ll hear it. And then we can make a choice as to who will really help the small businesses.