One of the key focus points in the recent Presidential debates between President Barack Obama and his opponent, Governor Mitt Romney, is the economy of the United States. As the unemployment numbers grow, many Americans are feeling frightened of what is to come not only for their country, but for their families and themselves as well. As many have pointed out, entrepreneurship could be the force of momentum that helps put America back on it's feet. The renegade entrepreneur could be the key to bringing those unemployment numbers back up again. “How?” you may ask. Well let's look into this.
On July 13, 2012 in a speech he gave in Virginia, President Obama made the statement, “If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help. There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you’ve got a business, you didn’t build that. Somebody else made that happen.”
That statement opened a world of controversy among renegade entrepreneurs and small business owners who have never taken a dime from the government, but built their businesses from the ground up by the sweat of their own brow. Many of these daring men and women placed their own homes up as the collateral for the cash to start their businesses, and gave up time with the families to do the work themselves. They risked it all in the hope that they could create their own jobs where there were none, and possibly…hopefully…become successful enough to create jobs for others as well.
Soon after that statement, Mitt Romney started his own campaign in favor of entrepreneurship and small business. His website soon had a page entitled “Built By Us” on which he stated, “Clearly this President doesn't know how our economy works.” The page goes on to say, “Mitt Romney understands that we have to celebrate people who start enterprises and employ other people rather than devalue them. Success is not the result of government, it is the result of hard-working people who take risks, create dreams, and build lives for themselves and for their families”.
In another statement of response to the Democratic President's “You didn't build that” speech, Republican Mitt Romney said, President Obama's view of a free economy is to send your money to his friends. My vision for a free enterprise economy is to return entrepreneurship and genius and creativity to the American people!” Romney's running mate, Paul Ryan made the statement, “We believe that the government has an important role to create the conditions that promote entrepreneurship, upward mobility, and individual responsibility.” And Republican Senator of Florida Marco Rubio stood in support of entrepreneurship as well. So who is right? Is it the Democratic stance that these entrepreneurs did not get their own their own, or is it he Republican belief that America's recovery depends on the government's support of entrepreneurship?
As the managing news editor of Gallup.com, Lymari Morales explains, “Although business owners represent just a small subset of the US population, they are of course a critical component of the economy and overall economic optimism in the country,” This statement came after Obama's popularity sank in the Gallup polling. Morales also added, “further deterioration in his approval rating among business owners could certainly add to the perception that Obama is not doing enough to bolster small businesses in the country.”
With job creation, the economy, and unemployment at the top of the list of issues which our next President needs to face, it is imperative that he understands what is needed to help solve these issues. As citizens of America face losing their jobs and in many cases their homes, the Democratic Administration has spent the last four years promising to fix these problems, with no results. Instead, while Washington has politicized America's problems in an effort to win favor for their party, entrepreneurs, especially renegade entrepreneurs with their guts and willingness to take risks, have become the unseen force which can create more sustainable jobs.
The spirit of the renegade entrepreneur will bloom in the midst of an ice storm. As a matter of fact, these men and women function best when under tremendous pressure, which makes them vital in today's stressful world. While some politicians are making promises that they themselves will create new jobs in America, the successful President will realize that it is not the government who will save the day. As these politicians attempt to get their bills passed in the name of “job creation,” entrepreneurs are busy actually creating new jobs….no bill needed.
The facts are quite simple actually. Renegade entrepreneurs have the nerve to step out against the status quo, to swim against the popular vote, and to stand against the wind to make things happen. They create new businesses, which hire new employees, which create new jobs. These new employees will often be removed from public assistance or unemployment, saving the government money. They will also put the money they make back into the economy, fertilizing the dried up soil which politics have left in America. The answer is, yes, renegade entrepreneurs can help save America, and they need and deserve the support of its people, and its government to do so.