John Boehner, Aug 27, 2010

Growing up working at my dad’s bar in Reading, mopping floors and waiting tables, I watched him and the folks in our neighborhood agonize over the direction of the economy. Later, running my own business in West Chester, I learned firsthand just how difficult these decisions can be not knowing what the next week, or even the next day will bring.

Today, when I travel around our state, I talk to employers who are facing uncertainty like never before. They are afraid to invest and hire in an economy stalled by ‘stimulus’ spending and hamstrung by uncertainty. They are working hard just to keep the people they have.

In Ohio and across America, the prospect of higher taxes, stricter rules, and more regulations has these employers sitting on their hands. And after the pummeling they’ve taken from Washington over the last 18 months, who can blame them?

Earlier this week I proposed five actions President Obama should take immediately to break this economic uncertainty and help put Americans back to work.

First, stop job-killing tax hikes on families and small businesses. Raising taxes on families and small businesses during a recession is a recipe for disaster -- both for our economy and for the deficit. According to an analysis by the non-partisan Joint Tax Committee, Congress’s official tax scorekeeper, half of small business income in America would face higher taxes under the president’s plan.

Second, veto job-killing ‘Lame Duck’ legislation. Democratic leaders refuse to rule out the possibility of forcing a ‘cap and trade’ national energy tax or ‘card check’ legislation through in a lame-duck session, after the election, after the voters have had their say. This only compounds the ongoing economic uncertainty.

Third, call on Congressional Democrats to stop obstructing efforts to repeal ObamaCare’s harmful ‘1099 Mandate.’ The president’s government takeover of health care is already wreaking havoc on employers and entrepreneurs. One of the new law’s most controversial mandates requires small businesses to report any total purchases that run more than $600. It is expected to cost employers and entrepreneurs $17 billion over the next ten years. President Obama should call on Democratic leaders to work with me and my Republican colleagues to repeal this mandate without delay, and without strings attached.

Fourth, cut spending to create jobs. Economists have warned that all this borrowing runs the risk of causing a damaging spike in interest rates, which would cripple job creation. House Republicans have put forward a proposal containing $1.3 trillion in immediate spending cuts, and we stand ready to work with the president to put a stop to Washington’s spending spree.

And finally, ask for -- and accept -- the resignations of Secretary Geithner and Larry Summers, the head of the National Economic Council. Virtually no one in the White House has run a small business and created jobs in the private sector. That lack of real-world, hands-on experience shows in the policies coming out of this administration. It’s time for a fresh start.

Republicans are listening to the American people and working to provide the fresh start our country so desperately needs.

In May, we launched America Speaking Out, a ground-up initiative to gather ideas from Americans on ways to build a more responsive government and a better country. You too can get involved. All you have to do is log on to AmericaSpeakingOut.com, post an idea of your own, or comment and vote on someone else’s.

While at AmericaSpeakingOut.com, you’ll find hundreds of ideas focused on putting Americans back to work -- like Pat Tiberi’s (R-OH) plan to provide small businesses a tax deduction equal to 20 percent of their income to free up capital for job creation, and Rep. Geoff Davis’ (R-KY) idea to stop federal bureaucrats from imposing costly rules and regulations on employers without congressional approval.

Combined with the five steps I’ve outlined, these types of common-sense ideas are exactly what is needed to break the uncertainty that is crippling America’s innovation and entrepreneurship.

Congressman John Boehner is the House Minority Leader. Boehner, a Republican, represents Ohio's Eighth Congressional District, which includes Miami, Butler, Preble, Darke, and Mercer Counties.