How to Save American Business

And that doesn't always involve passing a law. Sometimes we need leadership more than legislation. We need someone to explain how the economy works, what the real issues are, and how we ourselves can deal with them without getting the government involved. I believe explaining all that is the leader's role. Great leaders are great teachers, and you did a terrific job when you came here a year ago. The speech you gave was perfect for our community. You showed us how the tax cuts and your economic policy benefited company owners and employees alike. You got out there and sold it, and we understood it.

Encourage companies that are considering closing entire factories to keep some of the work here in the U.S.

Let's keep it going. Here are examples of issues I would encourage you to think about in your second term. They may not be the same as the economic priorities you've been hearing about from other people, but believe me, things look a lot different out here in the trenches than they do in the government buildings of Washington or the corporate suites of New York City.

The Health Care Crunch

I understand that there are a lot of health-care-related issues you have to think about as President, but the biggest one for businesses like ours is rising health care costs. Health insurance premiums jumped 11.2% between the spring of 2003 and the spring of 2004, according to a survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research and Educational Trust. Our company's health care costs -- we're self-insured -- will rise another 20% next year, from $2.5 million to $3 million. And yet, the consumer price index increased only 2.3% last year. We haven't seen that low a level of inflation in health care costs in a long, long time. Indeed, there have been double-digit percentage increases in premiums for four years running, forcing more and more small businesses to stop offering health insurance altogether. In 2004, only 63% of companies with fewer than 200 employees provided health benefits, down from 68% in 2001.