George Allen continued his Virginia Voices tour by meeting with small business owners and community leaders for a roundtable discussion hosted by the Mount Vernon-Lee Chamber of Commerce.
Established in 1954, the Mount Vernon-Lee Chamber of Commerce represents more than 425 local businesses. George Allen was welcomed to the Chamber by President Barbara Doyle, Hispanic Business Committee Chair Daisy Figueroa and Board Member Jay McConville.
Attendees included small business owners and community leaders from a variety of industries and interests, including health care and pharmacy, consulting, commercial banking, construction, real estate and philanthropy. As George Allen listened to concerns and ideas during the roundtable discussion, hard-working Virginians shared a similar message: Washington makes business more expensive.
“As a small business owner, I wish Washington would walk a mile in my shoes and understand what it’s like to balance a budget under the taxes, regulations and energy costs they’ve created,” said Vanessa Wheeler, owner of Holly, Woods and Vines. “I don’t want to be controlled by the government. George Allen understands we can’t spend money we don’t have, tax hikes don’t create jobs, and more regulations mean less money to live on. I’m glad to know that George Allen will be a voice for small businesses like mine who need less government and more freedom.”
According to the Small Business Administration, small businesses represent 99.7 percent of U.S. businesses, employing nearly half of all private sector employees. Over the past 17 years, small businesses have generated 65 percent of the net new jobs. Additionally, small businesses feel the effects of Washington’s policies more intensely than larger businesses. The Small Business Administration reports that businesses with fewer than 20 employees spend 36 percent more per employee than larger businesses to comply with federal regulations.
“Susan and I and our family live in the Mount Vernon area,” Allen said, “and all our children are in or attended Fairfax County public schools, so we are acutely aware of the challenges facing small businesses and families in our community. We know that taxes, regulations, fuel prices, congested roads and transportation, and schools are what families talk most about at their kitchen tables in Fairfax County.”
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Response from Lily Adams, Kaine campaign spokesperson:
“The last thing small business owners in Virginia need is another six years of George Allen’s reckless spending and bitter partisanship, which would guarantee more fiscal imbalance and political dysfunction that is crippling Washington and slowing our economic recovery. George Allen has repeatedly proven he is unwilling to find common ground, unlike Tim Kaine who has a proven record of bringing people together and a forward-looking agenda that will encourage small businesses to grow, expand, and hire.”
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