Normally I refrain from going off topic on this blog, especially to rant on political topics. Today I’m making an exception.

For most folks – except us political junkies – this news item may not register in your world at all. On Tuesday, Senator Jim Bunning brought the workings of the nation to a brief halt as he held up approval of an extension to unemployment benefits. The press played this off as another typical Republican dirty trick and an especially ruthless one since it threatened to delay or cancel benefits to ordinary people out of work.

Digging a bit deeper, however, Senator Bunning’s demand was not to shut off benefits, but instead to force Congress to dedicate the money to pay for them. Without this measure, the cost would be applied toward the burgeoning budget deficit.

Now only the most heartless among us would suggest that an extension to unemployment benefits is unnecessary. This is the deepest recession/depression of my life and one that promises new economic realities as we emerge (assuming we do). Many legitimately need help, and that help should benefit us all by mitigating what otherwise could become catastrophe.

On the other hand, as a small business owner, and one struggling to keep my doors open, make payroll, pay the bills, and take home enough to pay my mortgage each month, I cringe at what I’m seeing in Washington. Sure, this little stunt was a PR play, but it highlighted the fact that the folks we’ve elected are not being good stewards with our resources.

In the current economic climate, it is nearly impossible to get small business funding without paying a draconian price. While we are spending billions here and billions there in the name of stimulus, where is the help for small businesses? As the larger companies lay workers off in record numbers, it is the small businesses that are left to pick up the pieces. The number of qualified professionals with years of experience who are out looking for work today is staggering. The reality is many are going to find their next job with a small business trying to serve a market created by their former employer’s belt tightening.

So what is being done to assist this transition? Not much that I see. I don’t want to take someone’s unemployment check, but if that same money were made available to me in the form of loans and tax credits, I could hire the person who is otherwise stuck at home and frustrated. Isn’t that a win-win? Are you listening Congress? President Obama? Tea Partiers? NBC, CBS, ABC?

While this post is a general rant, what I am looking for in the next round of political leaders is a commitment to building an economy that will allow business to grow and thrive at a sustainable pace; spending policies that understand we cannot continue to borrow to support our bloated ways, and leadership that will stand up and be accountable for their actions. Let’s hope some help is on the way.

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