Boeing CEO: Don't help SMALL businesses...helping BIG businesses automatically helps them!

[Amerigo Vespucci]

W. James McNerney Jr., chairman, president and CEO of Boeing Company

Corporate America descended on Capitol Hill Wednesday morning hoping to ride the small business gravy train that's been gaining steam. Instead, they caught an earful from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who didn't appreciate the message they brought.

CEOs representing 11 major corporations argued that the Democratic emphasis on small businesses missed the important role that Big Business has to play, several people in the meeting told HuffPost.

"The way I heard it was, 'Small business was important, but you have to understand that these companies in the room, we work with thousands and thousands of small businesses around the country, so when we're doing well, they're doing well,'" said Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.).

The meeting was organized by Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), chair of the Democratic Steering Committee, and took place just before Democrats voted on a jobs package that consisted mostly of tax breaks for small businesses.

W. James McNerney Jr., chairman, president and CEO of Boeing Company, was one of the more outspoken executives, arguing that helping big business was the same as helping small businesses, and that either way he supported them doing both, not one or the other. For every job created at Boeing, he said, two small business jobs are created.

His argument sparked something in Reid, who recoiled, indicating with his body language and facial expression that he didn't like what he was hearing, according to people in the room. Reid dressed down the CEO and then walked out of the meeting.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/24/reid-spars-with-ceos-walk_n_475313.html

[liberal N proud]

1. GREEDY bastards

Reaganomics at work again.

[Uben]

2. Don't help businesses, help consumers....

.....and then the businesses will be fine.

[KansDem]

3. Sorry, not buying it *this time*

Thirty years ago St. Ronnie told us how if we cut taxes on the wealthy, they would invest in American businesses, therefor creating more jobs. We tried his "trickle-down economics" and are now seeing the result.

When the rich got their tax cuts, they took the money offshore resulting in outsourcing of American jobs. They also hid their swag in secret foreign accounts.

Fuck you, Jimbo...I'm not buying it again...:grr:

[Duer 157099]

4. You know, that sorta sounded like Boeing admitting they were

too big to fail.

Really a bad thing to say about yourself at this time, I think.

Once upon a time, "too big to fail" meant bailout. I think the tide may start to turn to: "well then you'd better get smaller"

[LiberalFighter]

5. What about small businesses that don't derive most of their revenue from bigger businesses?

What a ef n jerk.

[Bonhomme Richard]

6. As Boeing moves jobs out of Washington. Yeah. I get it. n/t

[theoldman]

7. It all depends on the meaning of "is".

When large companies get a government contract, they subcontract work to small businesses. However, many small businesses do not ever have a contract with a larger business except for a supplier. These small businesses need customers. We have to be careful in not comparing apples to oranges.

[ThomWV]

8. Ronald Reagan called that Trickle Down Economics - didn't work then, doesn't work now.

[ThomCat]

9. I'm hearing more of this bullshit.

The economy runs on SMALL Businesses. large Businesses run with the help of SMALL businesses.

Large businesses bring the economy DOWN more than up.

Small Businesses are incubators of growth, change, and innovation. They tend to distribute pay more equitably.

We need to be promoting more SMALL Busineses.

These bastards who keep trying to steer all the stimulus and concern to large businesses are ultimately shooting us all in the foot. Do we really need an economy of monopolies? Is that what we want?

[Dappleganger]

10. Walmart, Inc. agrees wholeheartedly. nt