It's my PARTY

Entrepreneur, Sept, 2000 by Chris Sandlund

AND YOU MAY BE CRYING IF YOU STICK WITH IT COME ELECTION DAY. ENTREPRENEURIAL CONCERNS DON'T NECESSARILY FALL ALONG DEMOCRAT/REPUBLICAN LINES, SO KNOW WHICH CANDIDATE IS BEST FOR YOUR BUSINESS.

a SUCCESSFUL COMPANY RARELY CHANGES ITS CEO, BUT COUNTRIES ARE NOT COMPANIES. BILL CLINTON WILL STEP DOWN AS PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES IN JANUARY, AS REQUIRED BY THE CONSTITUTION. YOU CAN LOVE HIM OR HATE HIM, CREDIT HIM WITH THE CURRENT ECONOMIC CLIMATE OR NOT, BUT THE FACT REMAINS THAT THE U.S. ECONOMY HAS BOOMED THROUGH THE EIGHT YEARS OF THE CLINTON ADMINISTRATION. ENTREPRENEURS HAVE BEEN ABLE TO LAUNCH COMPANIES AND SUCCEED IN THIS ENVIRONMENT TO A DAZZLING DEGREE. SO, WHO CAN KEEP THIS PARTY ROLLING?

THAT'S THE QUESTION ON THE MINDS OF ENTREPRENEURS AS THEY JUDGE THE TWO LEADING CANDIDATES TO REPLACE PRESIDENT CLINTON. FORTUNATELY, VICE PRESIDENT AL GORE AND TEXAS GOVERNOR GEORGE W. BUSH SEEM TO UNDERSTAND THE SPECIAL NEEDS OF ENTREPRENEURS. "BOTH BUSH AND GORE ARE SYMPATHETIC TO THE ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT IN AMERICA," SAYS BENNIE L. THAYER, PRESIDENT AND CEO OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE SELF-EMPLOYED.

Part of that understanding may come from their backgrounds. Gore worked on his family's farm as a child and teenager, and then bought his own farm in Carthage, Tennessee, with wife Tipper in 1973. (It's fair to note, however, that he is more the gentleman farmer, having worked as a newspaper reporter and politician since leaving the Army.) Bush worked in the oil business for 11 years starting in 1976 and then was the managing general partner of Major League Baseball's Texas Rangers (not exactly your typical start-up).

FOR THE RECORD

But business experience isn't all these guys are about. They're politicians, so judge them by their political records.

Gore spent 16 years in the House of Representatives and the Senate. His ratings by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and National Federation of Independent Business were never very high. He voted with the Chamber an average of 30.4 percent and with NFIB an average of 32.1 percent during his congressional terms. Still, he supported such small-business efforts as 1992's Small Business Research and Development Enhancement Act while in Congress.

Gore's campaign, unsurprisingly, is running hard on the economic success of the Clinton-Gore years, and Gore cites the expansion of the SBA loan program to $14 billion in guarantees in the budget for the 2000 fiscal year. At the same time, he reiterates the economic policy pursued by the administration from 1993 forward: Reduce the budget deficit to lower the federal government's impact on financial markets so more money is available for investment. It's worth noting that credit availability topped many lists of entrepreneurs' concerns four and eight years ago. Today, it's rarely mentioned.

Meanwhile, Bush has been busy improving the Texas business climate. He has cut taxes and approved tort reform that has lowered entrepreneurs 'insurance costs. "[Bush and Texas legislators] eliminated 170,000 small businesses from having to file franchise tax returns," notes David Pinkus, president of Small Business United of Texas.

Pinkus notes the fact that Bush tends to treat small and large businesses even-handedly. In other words, entrepreneurs will get a fair shake but shouldn't expect special treatment in a Bush administration. As governor, he opposed legislation that would have create a small-business advocate because he worried it would increase the overall size of state government.

But politicians' past efforts only partially sway voters. Elections are about the future. This guide seeks to sort through candidates' claims and counter-claims about the five issues that most reflect entrepreneurial concerns, according to several sources, including a March 2000 poll conducted by TNS Intersearch of 1,122 entrepreneurs for American Express Small Business Services (for more information, see "It Matters To Us" on page 115).

Those results are combined with opinions from Washington, DC, small-business lobbying organizations: the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, National Small Business United (NSBU), National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE), National Federation of Independent Business, and Small Business Survival Committee.

Entrepreneurs, however, tend to make up their own minds. To help you do just that, each candidate's proposed policies for some of the most pressing concerns follow:

ISSUE 1: FINDING QUALIFIED WORKERS

If finding capital was one of the biggest issues for entrepreneurs in the past two presidential elections, finding qualified labor is the most pressing concern today. "It's the work-force issues that are at the top," says NSBU president Todd McCracken. "That's not only true of the American Express survey; it's true of every other survey I've seen."

One of the most generally accepted problems: Young people aren't coming out of school qualified to work. Both Bush and Gore favor establishing higher standards and charter schools and expanding savings accounts to help pay for education. However, Bush leaves the decision-making at state and local levels. Gore favors more federal funding, especially to pay for school construction and classroom computers.