JOHN BOEHNER

            House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) today issued the following statement on the White House’s plan to spend $30 billion on a new small business lending plan:

            “Small businesses are the engine of job creation in America, and for the past year they’ve gotten pummeled by the policies coming out of Washington – a sad reality this announcement will do little to change.  The small business initiative the President will announce today sounds awfully similar to the small business initiative he announced last year in Allentown – which has had little, if any, positive effect.  The bottom line is clear: more government spending isn’t what small businesses need.  What small businesses in America need is an end to the uncertainty created by Washington Democrats’ job-killing agenda. 

            “As a former small businessman, I know the uncertainty caused by proposals like the government takeover of health care, the ‘cap and trade’ national energy tax, the out-of-control spending, and the slew of tax hikes in the President’s budget is keeping small businesses from growing and hiring.  In addition, by law, TARP money must be used to reduce our record-setting deficit.  Frankly, this new plan is like offering a lollipop to a critically ill patient; it just doesn’t deal with the real problem.”