Morris Reid: It’s time to get back to work in Washington

With President Obama being re-elected, now is the time for the President and Congress to get back to work. The 2012 campaigns have ended and now it is time to stop the name calling, bickering and double talk and instead to work together to solve problems that our country faces.

Both President Obama and Congress need to roll up their sleeves and deal with the hard issues that our country faces. That means keeping our country from going over the fiscal cliff by embracing Simpson-Bowles and cutting our nation’s deficit as soon as possible.

Americans had their voices heard at the ballot box and now they demand that problems get solved by President Obama and Congress in order to get some results. Bold steps are necessary from our elected officials in order to get things done. Both parties must outline polices that will work to improve our country’s economy, help create new jobs and start cutting our nation’s deficit.

Some bold steps that can be taken include cutting the corporate tax rate in order to nurture and develop increased investment in U.S. companies. Such action is necessary to curb unemployment and bolster the job market. In order to become more globally competitive and strengthen our economy, we must lower capital-gains taxes and firmly support free and fair trade. We must extend credit to entrepreneurs and innovators that will lead us forward and help show Americans that you can be pro-business and pro worker as well.

Other steps include appointing a real business CEO to become the new Commerce Secretary and also giving Mitt Romney a role in helping our country improve our economic situation as quickly as possible. Democrats and Republicans need to find a way to work together on a bi-partisan basis. President and the congressional leaders need to meet frequently, working together on presenting ideas and working together to solve our country’s problems.

Now is the time that both parties and their leaders in Congress and the President show the American public what true leadership is all about. Let’s put aside our differences in order to work together and deal with the issues that need to be dealt with today. The campaigning has ended and now it’s time for President, Congress and the elected officials in Washington DC to get back to work.

Morris Reid is the managing director of BGR Group, a leading Washington, D.C.-based government affairs, public relations and investment group. He was a senior staff aide to former Vice President Al Gore, former Commerce Secretary Ron Brown and former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Andrew Cuomo.