You know, Obama is right about the fact that “[Business owners] didn’t get there on their own.” It’s also true that Government didn’t get there on its own; it had the prior fiscal support of business through its broad taxing authority. Where do they think the money came from to “create the internet” (even though it was Al Gore’s idea)? It came from the businesses that existed at that time. You could just as easily say that businesses today should thank businesses of the past for providing the funding for the infrastructure as government (which undoubtedly wasted significant portions of it on the way). In any case, if you put his words into context, what he is really saying is “You didn’t get there on your own, and we need you to pay even more than before to get you to where WE think you should go.” You’ll notice they never define “fair share”, but it’s always understood to mean “more.”
I think most business people understand that they are in an uneasy partnership with the government, local, state and federal. They pay over taxes in the way of fees, licenses, taxes on property, sales, purchases, income, payroll, use of highways, etc. In return, the government provides general services for which the individual business may or may not benefit in equal measure, but all get some benefit. Of course the business owner wants these and other input costs of his business to be as low as possible. If Obama wants to increase that burden, especially at a time of weakness in the economy, he needs to provide us with a more specific plan for spending it than “infrastructure, teachers, policemen and firefighters.” Make the case that the current level of spending is inadequate for needed services, reduce or eliminate those things that are not needed, justify each and every remaining program, and show that you have cut as much fat as is possible without hitting the bone. If he could make that case, I think those on both sides of the aisle would be more likely to go along with some kind of revenue increase. An actual budget might help (what a concept!). This is what a businessman would do; streamline and find greater efficiency while cutting unnecessary costs, and then if that isn’t adequate, look for additional revenue sources, if they exist. All government does is look for additional revenue sources while paying lip service to “budget cutting” (for which, again, you need an actual budget).This is the difference between having a community organizer in office rather than someone who has been in an executive position, who is experienced in running (and turning around) a large organization. Which is why, like it or not, Romney is really the only choice.
