The major stipulation that concerns me is that this new rule requires businesses to use the funds for expansion purposes. Don't get me wrong — I think right now is a great time for companies to consider expanding, given all the discounted assets that are all around us. But the fact of the matter is that not too many business owners are truly in expansion mode right now. I really don't foresee many new loans being created because of this small change the SBA has announced.

This is a shame, because the total number of 504 loans the SBA has approved this fiscal year is down 41.5% from the same period last year. Total dollar amount funded has dropped 42.5% from last year. It's apparent that the SBA needs to do more than it did earlier this week to stimulate lending (and this minor change was announced back in February . . . not exactly quick action on stimulating the economy). We need to do something to soak up the billions of SBA dollars that are just sitting on the table right now rather than create a new loan program (like the new ARC loan program with $255 million to help maybe 10,000 businesses with only up to $35,000 per business). The ARC loan program is merely a drop in the bucket of capital for America's small businesses. Allowing the SBA to free-up some of the billions already approved could make a significant difference . . . only $255 million and only $35,000 per business is nearly an insult to the 6.5 million small businesses with over 5 employees . . . ground zero for economic growth in America.

This change to the SBA 504 loan program is a small step in the right direction — they've finally started to put the 504 on par with the 7(a) program in terms of refinancing, which is long overdue. But the SBA will have to fully lift the restriction on refinancing in order to have the impact they want (and we all need) to have for America's small businesses. I'll write about a possible, easy solution (H.R. 257) in my next post . . . so stay tuned.

CEO Tony Hsieh has created a culture that can barely be described as “corporate.” Zappos employees are encouraged to literally pour themselves into what they do — working there becomes an extension of who they are. I won"t go into everything they do here — I"m saving it for the next issue of our Newsmagazine. But I will tell you about their fascinating HR practice that"s a little revolutionary.

Every new hire is put through four weeks of training — two weeks in a classroom learning the history of Zappos and two weeks learning how to answer customer calls. At the end of the training period, every single new hire is offered $2,000 to quit. Paying them to quit saves the company money by weeding out the people who would “jump ship” anyway. The way Zappos sees things, they don"t want someone who would take the money and run. They want people who will stick around and make an indelible mark on their company.

I have a lot more to share with you from my tour of Zappos, so be sure to look for the next issue of our Newsmagzine — the July issue. You"ll be surprised, entertained and inspired by some of the things you"ll read about this online shoe retailer.

If “40” is the new “30” and “60” is the new “45,” then I guess I'm about “25” right now, despite being chronologically “37.” It's not all bad, despite being closer to “40.” Plus, “37” has always been my favorite (lucky?) number. So I'm planning on this being a VERY BIG year for me. Look Out!

Now, my wife was a little shocked by my email late Friday (apparently she opted-into my database long ago – who knew?). Her comment with the first direct email she received was, “Does this mean I'm going to get hundreds of these?!?” Ah… no, dear, of course not.

Turns out, she only got about a dozen (dozens more only responded to me – sparring her and me, thankfully – they're on the blog now and many are very funny). But in that dozen she got, were about 4 different offers for Orlando MAGIC tickets. She went ahead and contacted a couple of the offerees, selected one, and bought the tickets (thank you, Alan). She still paid quite a bit more than I would have, but my veto powers were stripped from me with only 24 hours to go before my birthday and no other shopping having been done. To truly understand the magnitude of this situation you must first come to appreciate that my wife is one of those people who normally get their Christmas shopping done before Thanksgiving. Yes, she's one of them. To say she was in panic mode Friday night is a supreme understatement.

Her and my kids came back Saturday morning from getting the tickets with a bag of “goodies”: a MAGIC drum (noise-maker); a Superman bobble-head; gift wrapping paper; and so on. Of course, I knew what was going on – my wife and I were in on it, but we dared not tell the kids. They LOVE to surprise Daddy! When my son showed me his bobble-head, I promptly asked him where he got it (just to test him thinking fast on his feet). “Got it at Target, Dad.” Oh… and is that where the wrapping paper came from too? “Yep, Target…you know we just LOVE Target, Dad.” Very suspiciously put, hmmm.

On Sunday morning, I was allowed to sleep-in until 9:30 (oh, for the days in college when I could get up and just roll out to lunch!). At that precise moment, I was handed cards and a gift-wrapped envelope with the tickets in it. I feigned surprise – the kids loved it! From there, it was mostly just family time the rest of the day. Lots of basketball playing in the pool, and Winston (our black lab puppy) FINALLY learned to stop barking when we don't want to let him into the pool to swim – he'd stay in the water all day if we let him.

My wife and I left the house Sunday night around 6:30 for the 8:00 game as we'd heard about the carnival atmosphere outside Amway Arena. We were NOT disappointed. Pictures will follow later this week (you really ought to subscribe to our RSS feed now, so you don't miss these).

The noise in the arena was RIDICULOUS! The MAGIC themselves, however, were a bit of a disappointment. They started the game well, but quickly fell behind in the 2nd and 3rd quarters and didn't start making 3-pointers until it was too late in the 4th. No one was able to truly contain Kobe the entire series. While his supporting cast was slightly better than LeBron's in Cleveland, they will be hard-pressed to repeat next year if their free agents do what I expect them to do. As for Orlando, we have most everyone locked-up (Hedo is the lone exception) and the average age of our starters is around 27. With a new arena being build for next season, I think the “agony of defeat” will motivate our young guys into the Finals again next year. Just a hunch.

And by the way, I'm so glad you folks in California have learned to “just get along” – only 5 police officers were hurt and about 25 people arrested in the “celebrations” last night. I'd say that's marginally better than 7 years ago, when you won it last and burned police cars, vandalized 70 cars and 11 people were arrested. Anyway, “enjoy” it while it lasts. I think Master Phil is headed back to Montana on his motorcycle to end on a “high”-note – pun intended.

While many in Orlando (myself included) are still mourning the near-collapse of our beloved MAGIC last night at the hands of "Evil Kobe," as my almost 6-year old son calls him…my dear, sweet wife continues unabated to try to secure me game tickets for my birthday (37th one this Sunday, Flag Day - yeah, don't forget to hang your American flag out on Sunday and through Independence Day…that's the proper "flag etiquette" this time of year) and/or an early Father's Day present. I know. I know. Virtually impossible these days as they are Orlando's only major professional sports team…but she has great intentions and has been trying for weeks.

See, we used to share season tickets with another family, but as our children got older (in other words, they weren't babies that I could simply hold on my lap, whether they fell asleep at the game or not), we ditched them…the tickets that is, not the babies!

At least that's the rational I repeat to myself when I think about "those days." That and the terrible 21-win season of 2003-2004 (Superman didn't arrive until the 2004-2005 season). It just became too difficult to try to go to all those mid-week home games, and giving most of them away started to make me wonder why I had such expensive tickets at all (yeah, the seats we had were awfully good ones, too).

Now, my wife has been realizing the consequences of letting our "participation" lapse, and she's been frantically trying to buy me tickets as a gift. I've vetoed several of her bids on eBay, "too much for a game I can watch in my underwear in front of my big screen TV." I've even heard from friends of mine that she's asked about buying their tickets…seems they want to attend the NBA Finals a bit more than they want our money.

SO…if you've read this far and you happen to have decent tickets you want to part with, contact my wife at her email address (eshurn@bellsouth.net) and tell her so. I'm happy to have her accept a "slight mark-up" over face-value and if you want more, then let her write a check to your favorite charity - let's try to be capitalists AND philanthropists!

Yes, I'll pretend I don't know anything and that you just "magically" heard she was trying to buy me the "perfect gift" for Father's Day (I already own Kennedy's All-American Barber Club, so getting me a membership there has already been taken care of long ago). She'll be very grateful, as I will be too, even though it's for my own gratuitous benefit.

I really don't want to keep hearing it from my friends in LA! "Yeah, we KNOW Kobe's AMAZING, but an earthquake may one day send your awful state into the Pacific…so there! And our Mickey palace is better than yours!"

Anyway, we still BELIEVE…Now, if the MAGIC don't blow it Sunday night…that'll be a very special birthday present for me, regardless of whether my wife gets a rush of ticket offers this weekend or not. And if she doesn't, you know where I'll be on my birthday…just sitting there in my…okay, I'll spare you the visual. Let's just say I hope to be enjoying my birthday and getting ready to enjoy the following weekend's Father's Day. Now you know how you can help her and me.

Thanks again for indulging a very rare "personal" message from us and me at Mercantile. Have a great weekend and
GO MAGIC!

• The consensus of forecasting economists still expects a return to positive (not impressive, but positive) U.S. economic growth during this year's third quarter.
• Between 1980 and 2007, total emissions of major air pollutants within the U.S. dropped by 52%.
• The number of people who have quit smoking (46 million) now exceeds the number who still smoke (45 million). Roughly 21% of adults smoke today, versus nearly half in the early 1950s.
• A recent poll of more than 12,000 global business figures conducted by the World Economic Forum ranked the U.S. as the world's most competitive economy.
• Traffic deaths per 100 million miles traveled during 2008 were the lowest on record.
• Conventional thirty-year fixed-rate mortgages have been between 4.75% and 5.15% in recent weeks, some of the lowest levels on record
• The number of new cancer cases and deaths are falling for the first time since the government began compiling a report on long-term trends.
• Incomes for the poorest one-fifth of all earners have grown an average of 3.9% annually since 1994, slightly outpacing the 3.4%-3.6% average gain of those in the middle three-fifths of incomes.
• Average U.S. life expectancy has reached 78 years (men 75, women 80), the highest ever. This compares to 76 years in 1995, 68 years in 1950, and 47 years in 1900.
• For every dollar of U.S. economic output generated today, we burn less than half as much oil as 30 years ago.
• U.S. military deaths in Iraq during 2008 plunged by two-thirds versus the prior year.
• The U.S. trade deficit with the world fell for the seventh straight month in February to a nine-year low of $26 billion.
• Men's contribution to housework has doubled over the past 40 years, while their time spent on child care has tripled.
• A record 29% of men have earned a bachelor's degree or higher, versus 26% of women, also a record. This compares to a combined 7.7% in 1960. A record 84.6% of adults over age 25 now have at least a high school diploma, versus 24.5% in 1940.
• Violent crime declined 3.5% during 2008's first half versus the prior year. Violent crime overall is down 55% since 1993, with violence by teens down 71%. School violence has declined by half from a decade ago.
• Donations to charity set an all-time high in 2007, with more than $300 billion donated by individuals, foundations, and corporations. As a percentage of GDP, Americans gave twice as much as the next most charitable nation…England.
• Productivity of the average U.S. worker rose an average of 2.6% annually during the past 10 years, the largest gains in 40 years. Rising productivity is a long-term key to higher standards of living.
• Air pollution declined 25% over the past 30 years even as the population and the economy grew. Water quality also continues to improve. More progress will occur in coming years as companies see rising value in "going green".
• Alcohol-related traffic fatalities in the most recently reported year dropped by more than half versus 20 years ago.
• During the early 1960s, the five-year survival rate from cancer for Americans was one in three. Today it is two in three…continuing to climb…and the highest in the world.
• Substantiated cases of childhood sexual abuse have fallen 49% since 1990. Physical abuse of children is down by 43%.
• The number of abortions performed in this country has declined by one-third since 1990 and is now at a record low.
• The U.S. rate of home ownership reached 69.2% of households in recent quarters, the highest ever, before declining slightly.
• Women earned nearly 60% of all bachelor's degrees awarded in recent years, versus 43% in 1970 and 24% in 1950. Women earned a similar share of master's degrees.
• Illicit drug use among U.S. teenagers hit a five-year low of 9.8% in 2006, down 16% since 2002.
• U.S. teen pregnancy and birth rates plummeted to all-time lows in recent years, before a slight rise. The reasons? More widespread use of birth control, more work opportunities, and more girls who "just say no".
• The Consumer Price Index (CPI) has actually declined 0.4% during the most recent 12-month period—the first 12-month decline since 1955—helping to stretch consumer incomes.
• The upward "mobility" of the typical American remains the greatest in the world. Why? The U.S. economy "rewards" the combination of hard work and educational achievement more than ever before…and more than any other country in the world.
• The U.S. role of dominance in the global economy in recent years has been as clear-cut as at any time since the 1950s.

If you're not already smiling, you should. You should also feel blessed for living in a time like this and be proud of playing a major part in it. Entrepreneurs and those that work with and help entrepreneurs have played a significant role in helping make our Country Great. Never let anyone tell you otherwise. The work that people, such as ourselves, do is priceless to our society and matters tremendously.

By the way, you can read part of my recent interview with Jeff for our Small Business Success Strategies® TeleSeminar Series in our recent May/June Newsmagazine. If you want to read the whole thing, you can become an SBSS Subscriber at www.SmallBusinessSuccessStrategies.com. The investment is minimal, and more than worth it. Ask yourself: "What else am I doing to continually learn and improve in this Changing Economy?"

With his permission, I've reprinted most of the articles here and added some of my own comments (always in the brackets, highlighted, and in italics). While it's a little long, it's written very conversationally and in a story format, so it's definitely worth your time and trouble to get through it. Plus, this is truly the kind of thing that you ought to comment on at the end of this blog post, whether you agree, had no idea, or have suggestions for the new SBA Administrator. Let us know where you stand. Something HAS to change. Bailing out old, dying industries with nearly $800 billion while the source of 70% of America's net new jobs every year only gets about 1% of that figure is a travesty. It's time America's entrepreneurs have a tireless advocate in Washington and not merely another bureaucrat using the SBA as a stepping-stool to bigger and better things. America's businesses are working harder than ever to stay in business and trying to get ahead these days, why should we expect anything less from our civil servants?

Why I threw Karen Mills under the Bus
My CNN Interview

SBA Administrator Karen Mills had been in her position for just over a month when I taped my CNN interviews in New York on May 7.

My criticism of her was based on the fact that in her first 30 days she had not made any public appearances or made any statements discussing the crisis in small business lending. [THIS is kind of what you'd like to see from the new Administrator!]

CNN Money anchor Poppy Harlow challenged my criticism. She said even the President knows this will take time.

However, I said Ms. Mills needs to be out there, talking to the small business lending community. I said she is the voice of small business.

We need to hear her solutions to getting capital for Main Street.

The previous week I had attended the NADCO conference for SBA 504 lenders. Ms. Mills had sent her chief of staff to address these critical private sector partners that were experiencing a 45% drop in 504 lending. [She should have been there herself – making it a priority… what could possibly be MORE important?]

The day I taped my interviews in New York coincided with opening night of the NAGGL Conference in Boston. The situation for 7(a) lenders was even more dire, with that industry suffering a 57% drop in lending.

Ms. Mills chose not to appear at that SBA lender conference either. [What WAS she doing either week?!?]

My underlying frustration was based on what was happening to Main Street in my own town – a suburb of 23,000, 12 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles. Every week that goes by without the full force of SBA's stimulus package brings the closure of more small businesses.

No one is speaking for them – even though small business accounts for 70% of the GDP and 50% of new jobs in the American economy.

I am angered by SBA's failure to follow Congress' 15-day emergency regulatory implementation language for parts of the stimulus that were due to roll out March 4th and 19th – 504 and 7(a) secondary market liquidity programs – and of course the $35,000 ARC loan program designed to help small businesses get through this recession.

I'm not alone. Senator Snowe, the ranking member on the Senate Small Business Committee, urged Ms. Mills at her confirmation hearing to get these programs moving. She understands the cost of delay. [Are we sure? She's a former venture-capitalist NOT a former small business lender – there's a canyon-sized gap of a difference.]

Every week of delay results in more lost jobs, reduced local sales tax revenues – and failed entrepreneurial dreams.

Since December, more than 15 small businesses have failed on my Main Street. A Union 76 gas station that had been family owned and run for more than 60 years. A sandwich shop. My wife's hair salon. A gym. Real estate brokers. Small gift shops. A loan broker. A management company. An art gallery. A small clothing store. Even the shipping store where I drop off my UPS packages is now gone.

One of the sadder stories was one of the local gift shops. Next to a "For Lease" sign in the shop's front window is a handwritten note that reads, "Thank you for shopping with us, whether it was for one day or 60 years – Pam and Pete."

"For Lease" signs litter the two-mile stretch of my Main Street.

If all these workers were employed by a Fortune 500 company that was threatening to close the local branch, there would be an outcry to save the jobs and the factory. Politicians would try to cut deals. Bailouts would be proposed. [Exactly!!!]

Not so with my local small businesses. Every week that goes by with an incomplete SBA stimulus package results in more lost jobs and failed entrepreneurs.

The secondary market must be fixed. It needs SBA's stimulus program for liquidity so small business lenders can make loans. Small businesses need access to the ARC $35K loan program.

So, when I was asked by Ms. Harlow how I felt about Karen Mills, that's why I said she needs to be out there. She needs to talk to lending partners. She needs to move bureaucratic inertia to get these programs launched and get the flow of capital back to Main Street.

Off camera, I said she should have been the one interviewed by CNN, not me.

She must be the voice for small business. [Or she should step aside, go back into the private sector or move on to something else. These are critical times and America's small business community needs a strong, tireless Advocate… not someone merely going through the motions.]

CNN

I was invited to New York by Emily Maltby and Stacy Cowley. Emily writes about small business issues for the CNN Money website. Stacy is the site's editor. [Emily has interviewed me several times as well – very competent and nice.]

It was a heady experience and everyone there went out of their way to make me feel comfortable.

I was met by a friendly, calming producer, Robert Walker, and he escorted me to Makeup.

When I was booked, I reached out to Chris Hurn of Mercantile Capital, a 504 lender out of Florida. Chris is a marketing genius and recently did a great live piece on SBA lending for "Fox Business News." I asked him for some tips. He said: 1) Button my coat so my gut doesn't hang out – Chris obviously knows me; 2) Lean forward at a 15-degree angle; 3) If you are asked two questions at once, stay focused on your talking points and only answer one. Allow the anchor to follow-up; 4) Make sure you get makeup, or you will look really, really funny. [You'll now see if he followed my advice…]

Make-up

Although I worked in Hollywood for a number of years, I have never worn makeup – never even thought about it. When I told my wife my problem, she got very excited. She was ready to take me out shopping and teach me all about her wonderful world. Needless to say, I did not share my wife's enthusiasm.

I emailed Emily and Stacy on the makeup situation. They politely said they were CNN, and they could find somebody to take care of me.

That somebody was in a room with three other makeup artists. Each one had a barber shop style chair with hundreds of little bottles stacked neatly all around. Unfortunately, I have forgotten her name, but this lady was a real pro who obviously has taken care of a lot of people more important than I.

She went right to work dabbing my face with something (I have no clue what it was). I talked to her about her work and she was very formal, until I confessed that this was my first experience with makeup.

She immediately warmed to the challenge, telling me that she was going to give me "the full treatment."

After finishing the dabbing of stuff all over my face, I figured she was done. I started to get out of the chair when I noticed that she had some type of instrument in her hand that looked suspiciously like something a proctologist would use.

She said, "Relax sir."

It was an air brush! I knew that from a painting job I had during college. And I'm not talking a little air whooshed out here and there. She was laying it on in a continuous stream as if she was covering a canvas.

I wasn't expecting this and needed to take a deep breath. She said, "Don't breathe! Hold your breath!"

After what seemed to be a very long time, she told me it was safe to breathe again. She combed my hair real quick and pointed me over to the Green Room. I was in and out of Makeup in less than 5 minutes. I thanked her profusely and walked over to the Green Room.

The Green Room

Of course, the first thing I did was look into a mirror. Not bad! A little pasty, but all the natural redness in my face was gone – only to reappear on camera! And the makeup seemed to clog my pores, so I didn't think I would sweat that much – more on that later.

My observations on the Green Room. Well, it was green. More of a hospital washed-out lime green. I was the only one in the room. I guess it was soothing.

The big screen TV was turned on to CNN news, of course. CNN Atlanta had just cut to New York, where Poppy Harlow was finishing a live report. There were a couple of couches and chairs with magazines strewn about on a coffee table. I grabbed some ice water and started gulping.

After about 10 minutes, Robert came into the room and took me to the set.

CNN Money

The CNN Money set is in the Time Warner building at Columbus Circle in New York. It sits in the middle of a room with about 50 staffers on each side of the set staring into state-of-the-art computer screens.

Approximately half of the staffers support CNN's on-air segments, while the rest are assigned to its Web site.

The room is cavernous. At the end of the room are Anderson Cooper's and CNN's "American Morning" sets.

The CNN Money set is elevated and surrounded by cameras and several banks of bright lights. Robert brought me in and introduced me to Poppy Harlow, the stereotypical female cable anchor. Blonde, young, talented, beautiful and smart.

I made my first gaffe by calling her "Polly," which brought a sharp rebuke from both Robert and her!

Poppy it was then.

The three of us went over her questions and she quickly honed in on my criticism of Karen Mills. She said that we'd have two segments running approximately five minutes each. The first segment was "Jump-starting SBA Lending." [It should have been Bob AND me there…we could have tag-teamed those CNN types… oh well.]

CNN Producer Robert Walker left the set and settled in behind his monitor. Camera personnel quickly appeared – I should know this, but I don't remember how many cameras were used. Robert told me not to worry about the cameras and not to look at the monitor – of course I then took a quick peek and saw some old fat white guy sitting in my chair. That extra 15 pounds seemed like a lot more. Time to put in some more gym time.

I put my water bottle behind the screen and we were off.

I made my second gaffe when I said that it was tough to be a small business banker these days. Mangling Fullerton Community Bank SVP and SBA Manager Joan Earhart's line, I asked, "How can a banker trust lending to small business when GM and Chrysler are bankrupt?"

Eventually, I'll be right, but as of May 7, I was wrong. That line ended up on the cutting room floor, which saved me and CNN from a possibly massive lawsuit. Also cut was Poppy's questions about how I felt SBA was doing with the stimulus package. I gave a vanilla answer that I respect the bureaucrats; they have a tough job but they are missing some deadlines. Poppy wouldn't let me off the hook. She looked me in the eye and asked how I felt about the new SBA Administrator.

I said, "Very clearly she needs to become the voice of Main Street and I am a little bit critical of her right now because she hasn't done that. Now I know she has only been on the job for three to four weeks but all she has done is announce her appointments and the ability for lenders to grant money to dealerships." [That should have only taken a few days… what ELSE has she accomplished?!?]

Poppy and Robert liked my answer – not necessarily for the content, but for the opinion.

We ended the first segment and went right into the next one. "Befriending Your Small Business Lender."

I was a little more at ease with this segment and I don't remember anything being cut. The questions were all softball and I tried to give passionate, succinct answers without pauses interspersed with the dreaded "you know."

During one of my responses, I felt a drop of sweat running down my face. Poppy sees it. Mercifully, Robert cuts to a graphic.

We finished, Robert and Poppy said I did a good job – I'm sure they say that to all guests. I assume an invitation to come back will be the final arbiter of my performance.

Afterwards I met up with Emily and Stacy and we talked for about 10 minutes. I took off my coat to discover my blue shirt was drenched through like Albert Brooks' character in Network News. Robert, Stacy and Emily laughed it off, saying that it happens all the time and the lights are awfully hot. They were being kind.

My third mistake occurred when Robert asked me if I want to go back to Makeup to have my makeup removed. I thought to myself, "Nah, I'm a guy. I want to spend the least amount of time possible in that room." So I simply said, "Nah, thanks anyway. I'll clean it up myself when I change for my train trip to Boston." [Uh oh… forgot to tell Bob about this…]

He shrugged, but I'm sure he was laughing to himself at my rookie mistake. [Yep!]

As I left the set, a tour group of about 10 to 15 people were walking in and I overheard the tour guide say that they just finished a segment. The tourists were all looking at me, trying to figure out who I was. I should have told them to ignore me and check out the true star, Poppy Harlow. [Reminds me of the New Era commercial with the regular guy wearing a Boston Red Sox baseball cap at a Japanese airport and people thinking he's David "Big Papi" Ortiz… Bob should have played along and acted like some big head-of-state. "President Medvedev! President Medvedev!"]

I grabbed a cab, went back to my aunt and uncle's apartment in New York, and started taking off the makeup. I promptly ruined three of their white hand towels by staining them with some horrible brown stuff that will probably never wash out. I gave up trying to get the rest of the makeup off my face and wore the itchy, uncomfortable stuff to Boston.

Conclusion

Many have asked if I was nervous. Not really. I was a little nervous before the first question, but quickly got over it. I know this stuff cold. I'm passionate about the subject of getting capital to Main Street. I'm comfortable speaking to crowds. It could have been intimidating on the set, because there were about 100 people in the room, but that didn't bother me. Poppy was a great interviewer and CNN treated me very nicely.

The problem I had was watching the final, edited product. For some reason, watching my performance made me very nervous and uneasy. It was very difficult for me to watch those segments. I wonder if Karen Mills had a similar reaction. [Let's hope so… we think you did a very nice job, Bob.]

While American "exceptionalism" is under attack in some quarters, we at Mercantile firmly believe that America is indeed a "special" place, for us and for the world. And our motivation to help America's small business owners and entrepreneurs stems directly from our deep desire to assist this backbone of the American economy: those business owners and entrepreneurs yearning to create their own destinies. We are fully cognizant, however, that none of this would be possible were it not for our brave military personnel protecting our freedoms and way of life . . . and it is why charities supporting veterans' causes have always taken precedent around Mercantile when we give back.

Earlier this week, my daughter's 1st grade class did a presentation on the Statue of Liberty, including a recitation of a poem from Myra Cohn Livingston in response to the poem, "The New Colossus," by Emma Lazarus which appears on a plaque at the base of the statue. It reads:

"Give me your tired, your poor, she says,
Those yearning to be free.
Take a light from my burning torch,
The light of Liberty.

Give me your huddled masses
Lost on another shore,
Tempest-tossed and weary,
These I take and more.

Give me your thirsty, your hungry
Who come from another place.
You who would dream of freedom
Look into my face."

The most profound words in the above poem, to me at least, are those in the last sentence. I reread them every time. One of our newest hires (Yelena Sulyagina) just got her citizenship earlier this week, and we all celebrated it with her. It was really our honor. Two other employees on our team are not natural-born citizens, but also chose to become citizens. By the grace of God, I am an American, and that means something profound to me . . . hopefully for you, too. Despite the world-wide turbulence of the past 18 months, America is still a beacon of liberty and hope and greatness in a not always kind world.

I hope you'll join me this Memorial Day in remembering what America represents and all our fallen heroes that strived ever-valiantly to create and to preserve it. And if you happen to know someone currently serving in the military or retired from service, please do what I ask my children to do when they see someone in uniform: thank them sincerely from all of us. To be forgotten would be the greatest casualty.

Make Your Memorial Day a Memorable One!

Nearly three years ago to the day, Dan's first story, The Da Vinci Code, was spoofed by our marketing team in a series of postcards. In our revised story, I searched all over Europe (following the same trail Robert Langdon did in the movie) trying to find the secrets of smarter small business financing and wealth creation . . . the 504 Code.

It was our most popular marketing campaign ever, and we've posted the series on our website so you can retrace my steps. Just go to www.tinyurl.com/504Code. I think you'll get a kick out of these.

If you go out to see the movie tonight, I hope you enjoy it, and I hope you have a great weekend.

- Chris

P.S. You'll see a photo of our staff on the final postcard in the series, but we've done a little growing since the 504 Code marketing campaign. We've actually doubled in size, which is evidence of our continued commitment to provide Smarter financing for our Clients' commercial property purchases. I feel like a broken record sometimes, but it's so important and I just can't help myself: WE'RE STILL LENDING. So many other lenders simply aren't these days, and I want you to remember us when you, your Clients or anyone else you know decides to make a smart investment in their commercial property. Just let me know how we can help — call 1-866-622-4504, email info@mercantilecc.com or visit www.TheSmartChoiceLoan.com.

And just so we're crystal clear: WE at MCC were created to help America's small business owners and entrepreneurs. We haven't jumped out of the market only to jump back in, like some hop-scotcher on a schoolyard on a cool autumn day. We've proudly been your small business advocate through thick and thin. Associating with a firm like ours is what forward-thinking business owners should be doing now. Sympathy for Big, Dumb Companies is hard to find in the small business quarters that I traverse. The Big Banks got what they deserved. They probably DO need to be nationalized, gutted, and then resold into the private sector. Us…we're just chugging along and picking up the pieces. Lots of good, profitable pieces, mind you. Hopefully, we can help YOU next. We will come out of this national malaise shortly…and I sense there's a LOT of pent-up demand out there – – people inherently understand assets are “on sale” in this economic downturn. We'll be around, ready and willing to finance your investments. Just don't wait too long, or the best bargains will be gone.

Some people wonder why I care so much about taxes, and my answer has always been that tax policy has a tremendous impact on virtually every other policy we put in place. It's the “glue” that keeps everything together or pulls it apart.

Recently-released Federal Reserve data (from the most current year, 2006) shows that 39.89% of all income taxes paid in America come from the top 1% of income earners — people earning more than $388,806 annually. 60.14% come from the top 5% of earners, or those making more than $153,542 a year. 70.79% of all income taxes paid come from the top 10% of earners (making over $108,904 per year), while 86.27% of all income taxes paid come from the top 25% (that would be people making over $64,702 per year). And even more shocking, 97.01% of all income taxes paid come for the top 50% of income earners, which you join once you cross the $31,987 threshold annually. To put it another way, we now have half of all workers (those showing a positive AGI) paying only 2.99% of the total income taxes in America…that's nearly 68 million people…and yet, we allow those folks' ballots to count as much as yours or mine. You might just want to re-read this paragraph slowly so this sinks in some.

I find this deeply troubling, especially among much talk of our new Administration raising tax rates on the top 5%…and we all know that more than just that group will have to “contribute” with the way spending in Washington is going these days. If half the people eligible to vote aren't paying much in income taxes (actually, 23 million Americans of working age paid nothing, yet still received federal “refunds” totaling $45 billion), then isn't it easy to essentially “buy” their vote? What do they care if we teeter into socialism or worse? Why would they care if government continues to grow…they were getting all of the benefits with none of the “sacrifices” in the first-place.

I still believe this is the most upwardly-mobile country in the world, yet we have a political class that wants to keep squeezing what I call the “productive class.” I suppose that's where the money is, but eventually you can no longer get blood from a stone. And in the middle of a recession, this is economic suicide. Maybe when the ratcheting-up of taxes begins again, we can refer to it as the “Success Tax” — at least let us keep some dignity about it. And by the way, for all the talk of the “rich getting richer,” recent Federal Reserve data shows the top 1% held 33.38% of the nation's wealth in 2007, actually DOWN from 33.9% in 1995 — and that was BEFORE the $11 trillion in household net worth was lost in the past 18 months.

Sure, there are people among the top 5% of income earners that are undeserving and even some that are even immoral, probably. But there are also people there that are the source of many of the jobs in America. The people that make business a source for good in this country and around the world. The people that make America go. Among this group are the people that took the risks that were available to everyone else, but that few others ever take…to start a business, against the criticism of everyone who said it would be foolish. The Many don't take the risks…not because they cannot, but mostly because they convince themselves they cannot.

I guess I'm still reeling from our Vice President's comments on the campaign trail that I'm somehow “un-American” for working so hard to earn what I do…I kind of thought that WAS American. At least that's what my friends who were born in foreign lands tell me when asked why they moved here. I also happen to think there's probably a direct correlation between the amount of television watching one does with their income: more hours, less dough. And I'm pretty sure there's a correlation between the number of books, magazines, newspapers, newsletters, etc. read, to income. I see entrepreneurs every day that don't do what “everyone” else is doing…and I think they ought to keep more of the rewards they earn, not have the desire taxed out of them. But maybe all of this makes me old-fashioned and resistant to “change.” I'm just a little sick of the class warfare.

Ah…those were the days. I'd say, “Look who's laughing now,” but there have been simply too many people hurt by the incompetence of these corporate “bigwigs” to make light of it now. It IS a bit ironic that here we stand with a 2008 net income greater than the combined profits of: Bear Stearns; Lehman Bros; National City; Regions Bank; Wachovia; Washington Mutual; Morgan Stanley Trust; Citibank; Colonial Bank; Fifth-Third Bank; Royal Bank of Scotland; UBS; and AIG.

And yes, we're raising capital right now, as you may know, but unlike they are, we're NOT doing it to shore-up our balance sheet for past mistakes and poor judgments. We're raising it to take advantage of the numerous opportunities that are all around us — we've hired five new employees in the past six weeks alone, with more being interviewed as I type this. The small guy is now becoming the predator. David is picking up more rocks.

I would be disingenuous with you if I didn't also explain that we're raising capital because, despite prominent economists like Paul Romer (husband of the President's Council of Economic Advisors Chairwoman, Christina Romer, who is also credited with co-authoring the ARRA) suggesting we need “good banks” to counter-balance the “bad banks” our government is presumably creating to “restart” lending, apparently no one in Washington really wants to restart lending or knows how to do it. I've heard at least two occasions of FDIC regulators (one in Georgia and one in Pennsylvania) sternly chastising suggestions of an unannounced and unofficial moratorium on new bank charters. Yet I challenge you to show me any new charters approved in the past five months. I know of none. Hmmm…

There has been much written about the shake-up in small business lending over the past 6 to 9 months, and I've been asked for my opinion and comments numerous times. America's small businesses are the backbone of America's job creation engine, yet window-dressing is mostly being done these days in Washington about it. Approximately 10% of the ARRA addressed small business needs. That's right, the sector responsible for about 70% of net, new job creation got only 10% of the largesse. Amazing how truly out-of-touch these folks are.

It will be interesting to see how long the memories of small business owners are when the Big Banks jump back into the fray, as they surely will. I'd said for years that most Big Banks' advertising slogans about “being there for their customers” didn't match reality, and I've certainly been proven correct, again. In recent weeks, there have even been countless stories of small businesses staging protests against the Big Banks for harmful lending practices, for trying to put them out of business. I'm sure this isn't the last of it.

I find it amazing that Congress (the House of Representatives, in this case) can act so quickly (and be so incredulous) to enact legislation (unconstitutional, by the way) a few weeks back in a matter of mere days to tax the $165 million in AIG bonuses (less than 1% of what we've invested in AIG to "bail-them-out"), yet most of President Obama's much-vaulted small business initiatives speech in mid-March was just a rehashing of some of the few provisions in the ARRA (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) that directly affect small businesses. The ARRA, sadly, is long on social engineering and short on much that's immediately stimulative. How come our elected officials can't show the same speed and deftness in passing meaningful legislation that might actually have a substantial impact on the growth of small businesses in America? Perhaps it's time you ask your local Representative this question.

If you're like me (and most of our readers here are either business owners or advisors to business owners), then you'll admit to yourself that somewhere, deep down, you're angry at these Big Banks that got TARP funds. You're irritated at the Wall Streeters who created this House of Cards. And you're frustrated that no one is knocking on your door to bailout your business. The Big Banks, AIG, and the auto industry should have had to choose between bankruptcies or receivership, not bailouts. We don't need the "rule of politicians" (screaming about the few people that made profits at AIG and actually give us a slim chance to get out of it, maybe nearly whole); we need and needed the "rule of law": chapter 11 or chapter 7 of U.S. bankruptcy law. The primary reason the Big Banks didn't declare is because Wall Street (where Geithner and Paulson once worked) would have been left holding the bag — they wouldn't have done as well as under the current bailout program. Sad, but irrefutable.

It may be public schizophrenia…people wanting programs they don't want to pay for…but people like us KNOW this is faulty logic, completely untenable in the Real World. Never-ending budget deficits cannot exist forever for small business owners. We can't raise the cost of our services indiscriminately. And we certainly can't print more money. While most people in America are belt-tightening, Congress is giving most departments and agencies double-digit percentage budget increases. Amazing!

I'm proud to announce that effective April 1st, 2009, Mercantile Commercial Capital, LLC changed its name to Mercantile Capital Corporation. We'd appreciate it if you'd take just a second to update your records to reflect our new identity. We value the opportunity to do business with you and those you know, and look forward to our continued association.

In other news, we were featured in a story on CNNMoney.com about how several businesses got the cash they needed for their entrepreneurial endeavors. The article tells the story of one of our Clients – – Lake Powell Furniture – – and how we helped owner Kip Bennett finance his new showroom. Also, SBTV.com mentioned us in their Daily Newscast this morning. You can go here to see the entire clip – – our blurb begins at 1:40 and ends about 2:32.

Don't forget: we ARE still lending, and RIGHT NOW is the perfect time to purchase commercial property. If you're not convinced, call me at 1-866-622-4504, email me at info@mercantilecc.com or simply leave me a comment below. I would love the chance to talk with you one-on-one about the opportunities that exist for smart, forward-thinking business owners. The government-guaranteed portion of our loans (nearly 45% of the loan amount) just reached an all-time low of 5.25% fixed for 20 years! Our SmartChoice commercial loans have many advantages over ordinary bank financing (if you can find a bank who's actually still lending, that is).

First of all, I'm happy to be featured on the Toilet Paper Entrepreneur's recent list of “115 Marketing Strategies For Small Business”. Go check out the list to see which of my nuggets of wisdom they chose to include (tip # 90). I'm sure you'll see another tip or two you can implement in your own business while you are there.

On Thursday, April 9th at 1 PM EST I'll be making a guest appearance on B-E-S-T Business Radio. B-E-S-T (which stands for Business-Owners & Entrepreneurs Success Tactics) specializes in providing small business owners and entrepreneurs with the information, systems, tools, strategies and education they want and need so they can better provide their families with the lifestyle they deserve. The show will be broadcast online at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/BESTBusinessRadio. You can also call-in to 646-716-7932 during the show to ask any questions, or email them to listener@BestBusinessRadio.com.

The next day, Friday, April 10th at 6 PM EST, I'll be on the Franchise Show to talk about the financing MCC offers to franchisees, as well as my new franchise concept, Kennedy's All-American Barber Club. You can listen to this one online, too, at http://www.wsradio.com/internet-talk-radio.cfm/shows/Franchise-Show.html. I think you'll get a lot out of these shows, and it would be great to hear some familiar voices call in to ask questions.

If you're able, take the time to listen in on these calls — it'll be time well spent. Here's to another productive week!

Happy April Fool's Day from the MCC Family,

Chris

******************

NEWS RELEASE

Mercantile Capital Corporation Retracts Earlier SBA 504 Announcement

"Just an April Fool's Day Prank to Release Some Tension," says CEO

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. — Mercantile Capital Corporation (formerly known
as Mercantile Commercial Capital, LLC) has retracted an earlier story about
its new public-private partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration
(SBA) and the U.S. Treasury. 

"Often times it's better to laugh, than cry," said Chris Hurn, Chief
Executive Officer of Mercantile Capital Corporation.  "There's been so
much tension, anxiety and uncertainty over the past several months in the
financial services industry, that we played an innocent practical joke. 
This is the very first time we've ever fabricated something, and we would
never do so on any other date."

There are several things Mercantile wishes to recant:
-  There have been no closed-door sessions with the Obama Administration
and Mercantile officials, nor has Mercantile paid the Treasury an "undisclosed
sum" of money for a portfolio purchase of SBA 504 loans or for naming rights
to the program.

-  To the best of Mercantile's knowledge, Bear Stearns never originated
or held a portfolio of SBA 504 loans.

-  Lehman Brothers, while originating tens of millions of SBA 504 loans,
did not sell these assets to Mercantile, nor were Mercantile officials aware
of any of Lehman's SBA 504 loans being considered "toxic."

-  Mercantile is not in the business of assuming and/or servicing loan
portfolios - they only originate SBA 504 loans nationally, one small business
owner at a time.

-  The U.S. Government, the Treasury Department, nor the SBA have granted
any exclusivity or other "preferential status" to Mercantile in regard to being
the only private-sector lender making SBA 504 first mortgages, much to Mercantile
officials chagrin.

-  Mercantile does not have license to rename the SBA 504 loan program,
despite its re-positioning of the program as "The SmartChoice commercial loan"
over the past year.

-  Acting SBA Administrator Hairston and soon-to-be confirmed SBA
Administrator Mills have not been in contact with Mr. Hurn regarding a name
change for the SBA 504 loan program . . . but perhaps they should.

-  Messrs. Hurn and Longstaff did not travel to the G-20 Summit this
morning - in fact, Mr. Hurn traveled to Cleveland, a far cry from London.

-  While Messrs. Hurn and Longstaff would be happy to educate governmental
officials (both domestically and internationally) about small business growth
and small business wealth creation through smart commercial property ownership,
neither men have been contacted by the Administration to do so.

-  Dr. Lopo Flairs is a fictional Treasury spokesperson with a name that
is an anagram, spelling out "April Fool's."

"We hope this joke did not cause anyone too much heartburn.  Anyone who knows
us, knows that we take our work very seriously and believe we really are the
best at providing SBA 504 loans to America's small business community . . . but
occasionally we like to be a little irreverent.  Life is much too short to
always be serious," said Hurn.  

"If the Administration wants to seriously consider any of the provisions in
this morning's press release to thaw-out the small business lending environment,
we would be happy to do our part," said Geof Longstaff, Chairman of Mercantile.

Mercantile officials are reportedly working on giving all of the hundreds of
people who went out of their way to call in and/or email in to congratulate
them on their "fake" news some gift of appreciation for being such good sports.

SBA 504 loans offer small business owners up to 90 percent financing at
substantially reduced rates to develop, acquire, and remodel commercial
facilities.  Really, it's true!
 
Mercantile Capital Corporation, formerly Mercantile Commercial Capital, LLC,
really does rank as the one of the most active providers of SBA 504 financing
in the nation and really has become quite well-known and decorated in their
industry with such honors as being a member of the Inc. 500 list of America's
fastest-growing companies, being named "Banker of the Year," and just last year,
being named "Best Small Company in Central Florida."  Who else could have
pulled an April Fool's stunt like this anyway?!?

* * *

For more information contact
Chris Hurn, CEO, Mercantile Capital Corporation, 407-786-5040
Geof Longstaff, Chairman, Mercantile Capital Corporation, 407-786-5040
Shannon D. Marks, President/COO, Mercantile Capital Corporation, 407-786-5040

Visit www.504Experts.com or www.504blog.com for more information.

I've copied the full release below. I think you'll find it pretty interesting, so leave me a comment to let me know your thoughts.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

NEWS RELEASE

Mercantile Capital Corporation Announces New Public-Private Partnership with Small Business Administration (SBA) and U.S. Treasury Dept.

Firm Set to Rename SBA 504 Loan Program as Part of Transaction

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. — Mercantile Capital Corporation (formerly known as Mercantile Commercial Capital, LLC) chose its first operating day as a new entity to announce a landmark new federal program for the nation's small business owners.

After months of closed-door negotiations with government officials, the Orlando-area based commercial lender has agreed to assume and service the small business loan portfolios of now defunct Wall Street firms, Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns – both of which originated hundreds of millions of SBA 504 loans over the past decade. Moreover, for an undisclosed sum, Mercantile will be granted “preferential status” in providing SBA 504 loans nationwide and given “naming rights” for the SBA 504 loan program. In a unique “swap-arrangement” that demonstrates the Obama Administration's creative spirit in working with the private sector and a need to raise revenues for the Treasury, Mercantile will maintain the servicing for these 504 loans, while the SBA confers to Mercantile the option to provide all SBA 504 first mortgages for the remainder of fiscal year 2009 and all of fiscal year 2010. Along with this groundbreaking exclusivity, Mercantile has 30 days in which to change the poorly named “504” moniker.

“This is obviously a very big day for Mercantile,” said Chris Hurn, Chief Executive Officer of Mercantile. “We spent a considerable amount of time and capital to negotiate this deal – to service what may turn out to be 'toxic' assets from failed financial institutions, but in exchange we'll become the SBA's exclusive provider of 504 first mortgages and get to rename the program for the next 18 months,” Hurn stated.

Hurn's business partner and the Chairman of Mercantile, Geof Longstaff, was equally effusive, “Our standing as one of the nation's leading 504 lenders positioned us as the 'go-to players' to get this deal hammered out. The government wanted experts like us to take care of these specialized loans and was willing to let us take the lead in thawing-out the frozen small business lending industry.”

“The fact that we'll get to rename the SBA 504 within the next 30 days was simply icing on the cake for us,” said Hurn.

Treasury spokesman, Dr. Lopo Flairs, commented, “The new Administration has chosen to be more creative – to throw the proverbial box out the window. This deal with Mercantile is a good example, as it accomplished our administrative needs while raising needed funds. The fact that the 504 loan program will get a new name for a few years is actually a plus for all parties involved. No one really knows why it was ever called that in the first place. This situation is really not unlike naming rights to a professional sports stadium, NASCAR sponsorships on their cars, or European soccer players with logos on their jerseys. We believe this is a good deal for America's taxpayers.”

Hurn said he hasn't yet decided on a new name for the 504 loan program, but since the program champions America's small businesses and entrepreneurs with the smartest financing available when purchasing commercial property, he is said to be leaning toward calling these loans “The SmartChoice commercial loans.” Acting SBA Administrator Daryl Hairston and the soon-to-be confirmed SBA Administrator, Karen Gordon Mills, are also working with Hurn to appropriately rename the program.

Hurn and Longstaff will be leaving early today to join the leaders of the G-20 Summit in a just-added presentation on international small business growth. President Obama invited these two small business loan experts to London to educate this illustrious group about successful small business wealth creation. Both men are expected back in Orlando by early Saturday.

SBA 504 loans offer small business owners up to 90 percent financing at substantially reduced rates to develop, acquire, and remodel commercial facilities.

Mercantile Capital Corporation, formerly Mercantile Commercial Capital, LLC, ranks as the one of the most active providers of SBA 504 financing in the nation and has become quite well-known and decorated in their industry with such honors as being a member of the Inc. 500 list of America's fastest-growing companies, being named “Banker of the Year,” and just last year, being named “Best Small Company in Central Florida.”

* * *

For more information contact
Chris Hurn, CEO, Mercantile Capital Corporation, 407-786-5040
Geof Longstaff, Chairman, Mercantile Capital Corporation, 407-786-5040
Shannon D. Marks, President/COO, Mercantile Capital Corporation, 407-786-5040
Visit www.504Experts.com or www.504blog.com for more information.

I'm doing my best to represent and fight for our nation's small businesses. Please forward this to anyone you know who needs to hear it.

I came across an interesting survey, which was a joint interactive poll by Zogby International (a polling firm that has been has been tracking public opinion since 1984 in North America, Latin America, the Middle East, Asia, and Europe) and WeMedia, asking: Who will lead us to a better future?

About two-thirds of Americans believe small businesses and entrepreneurs (63%) will lead us to a better future, followed by science and technology leaders (52%), government (31%), large corporations (21%), and traditional media (13%).

Now, while I'm not necessarily surprised by this outcome, I am glad that I'm no longer shouting this from the mountaintops alone. According to this survey, over half of America backs me up.

Notice that large corporations received among the lowest percentage of "faith", if you will, with just one-fifth of Americans believing they will lead our country to better times. Yet, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009, passed by our government — that only 31% of Americans have "faith" in to lead us to a better future — focuses on helping the large corporations, and not so much the ones that provide 60% to 80% of new American jobs . . . which also happens to have the "faith" of over half the Americans to get our country back in shape (I'm talking about America's small businesses and entrepreneurs, in case you got lost there).

I know that I've already "bashed" Washington for giving small businesses the shaft again. I've also already given Washington seven solutions to jolt America's small business community to create more much needed jobs in a previous blog. If you're new to my blog, or just haven't read them yet, then go catch up. Make sure to look over those posts' comments. What you'll read will be the true voice of small business owners in America. It's time for Washington to do something MAJOR for main street businesses, not just the "too big to fail" folks.

I propose Phase II – – a "Small Business Growth Act of 2009" to jumpstart our economy into the future. Let's start by incentivizing investments into new and successful small businesses. President Obama stated on the campaign trail that waiving capital gains for those investing in small businesses was noble public policy. But sadly, this provision was missing in the recent stimulus bill. So many politicians claim to be for small businesses, yet so many seem missing when real progress is needed (we saw this recently with our politicians including cuts in fees for SBA loans in the stimulus bill when it was an access to capital problem, not a cost of capital problem that should have been addressed).

If they're really serious about developing new job growth markets and supporting innovative small businesses, then this idea of a "free-pass" on small business capital gains needs to become law. On a trial basis (and for the tax revenue-loving legislators to stomach it), we need to waive capital gains taxes permanently for those investors that make equity investments into start-up firms or successful small firms (those with revenues currently less than $100 million) in calendar year 2009. The reason for only limiting it to 2009 investments is that we need private-sector investments NOW, not in 2010 – plenty of cash already sits on the sidelines, but it needs to be put back to work and in the right areas where it will do the most good. Enacting this gives investors, who have lost hope in Wall Street and Big Business investments (where they have virtually zero control), the incentive to put their dollars to work in places where they may have a far greater influence. And if a significant amount is invested, as I believe it would be, our legislators can always extend this provision into 2010, as it is the kind of public policy that always leads to increased tax revenues over time (it's an acknowledged fact of the Laffer curve).

We're still spending money to bailout ancient (by today's standards) companies that are shedding jobs, yet doing nothing for growing firms that are adding jobs. We're essentially propping-up failure at the expense of strengthening success. This is bad pubic policy. If job creation is what we want, then make it law that small firms hiring new employees in 2009 get a $10,000 tax credit per new hire. At a million new jobs, this only amounts to $10 billion dollars – a veritable bargain compared to the "deal" taxpayers got for bailing out AIG, Bank of America or Citibank. Since millions more with jobs would generate tremendous economic activity and tax revenue, wouldn't this seem like the thing to do now? Again, doing so only for this year (with an option for next year as it proves itself) stimulates immediately, not later.

Including a payroll tax holiday in this new Small Business Growth Act of 2009 for the remainder of this year would keep money in workers' pockets and owners' pockets. This equates to about 16% of compensation saved and immediately gives both parties more money to spend or invest.

My first three suggestions involve tax cuts or credits, but I'd also suggest four additional fixes to SBA lending that needs to be included in this new Act: eliminate the duplicity that exists between their two primary loan programs; increase competitive bidding by the federal government of non-toxic, SBA-guaranteed secondary market debt; raise the current $3 billion limit on the new 100% 1st mortgage-guaranteed SBA 504 loans to $10 billion and make it available for new SBA 504 loans as well; and raise the newly-enacted $250,000 "goodwill" limit on 7(a) business acquisition financing.

By making SBA 504 loans the only source for commercial real estate financing within SBA programs, this frees-up additional capital for 7(a)'s to finance start-ups and working capital. This also helps the small business community by taking away the "dirty little secret" in SBA lending whereby lenders promote inferior loans for commercial real estate purchases to unsophisticated small business borrowers because more fees can be made from those. By having the government competitively bid for SBA-guaranteed debt, it will help thaw those secondary markets that are so critical for bank liquidity and getting capital flowing again. Plus, purchasing these assets should generate positive returns for taxpayers as they have historically. By raising the cap on new 100% 1st mortgage-guaranteed 504 loans, you incentivize lenders to thaw-out their SBA lending and have both programs fairly operate close to the new 90% to 100% guarantee levels. By raising the newly created cap on goodwill financing back to original levels, the SBA can get back to previous levels of business acquisition financing standards, rather than reign-in this critical source of funding when it is most needed. Banks simply won't finance business acquisitions for small businesses with SBA guarantees.

There you go. Washington needs solutions… and I've just given them seven new ones that would jolt America's small business community into creating even more jobs so desperately needed right now. Will our leaders in Washington have the courage to draft and pass more meaningful and relevant legislation right on the heels of the ARRA? Will they recognize the societal changes underway toward more entrepreneurialism? Or are they just content rearranging the deck chairs on a fateful, sinking ship? Urge them on for more positive, productive change. We cannot afford anything less.

As important as the new American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 is to helping us get back to some sense of "normalcy" as a country, the sector that regularly produces between 60% and 80% of all new jobs in America will only marginally benefit. I'm talking about America's small business owners and entrepreneurs. They're the real losers from the recently passed stimulus bill, and it's unfortunate for our economy. Sure, there were some tweaks to the existing SBA loan programs (which I've been advocating for nearly 7 years), but these changes will only produce slight improvements to the small business lending arena to get valuable capital flowing again. I view the ARRA as Phase I – essentially a finger in the dyke of economic decline and stagnation – but much more is needed.

We need radical new legislation to produce tomorrow's new job growth markets – the markets that will enable us to grow our way out of this recession. Phase I was about "halting the bloodletting;" Phase II needs to be about healing the patient for future growth and prosperity. It's not too early to be discussing this, as taking these steps now will enable the recovery to begin much quicker and establish surer footing for the new economy we'll have on the other side of this cycle.

We need a "bailout" of sorts for America's primary job creating sector: small businesses. Our politicians have done plenty for their top campaign donors… I mean Big Businesses, but they've done shockingly little for small business. Why no one seems to suggest that we stimulate where 60% to 80% of new jobs are created is beyond me. We should go where our strengths are. It's time for those in Washington to recognize the shift in society that is presently underway – – from Big Business to Small Business. This shift has been slowly occurring for years, with diminishing pension plans and job security being the most noticeable, but the Internet and the recent collapse of confidence in "Wall Street-related" investing has accelerated this process.

No longer do wise parents tell their children to "get an education so you can go work for a big company with good benefits for many years and then retire." That advice is passé these days. Wise parents today teach their children to become educated, but use their education to go into business for themselves – to create and control their destiny, not become office or factory slaves hoping for a gold watch someday. With today's technologies and opportunities all around, there has never been a better time to start a business… yet fear is gripping many Americans like never before who would otherwise take the entrepreneurial leap during recessions like ours.

As a financier of small businesses and a serial entrepreneur myself, I regularly hear from people determined to do just this. They're tired of trusting some large, faceless, company to grow their personal savings. Many would rather strike out on their own and bet on themselves or their friend's business. Yet, our leaders fail to understand that economies always evolve and smaller, innovative companies always render larger, older companies obsolete. It's a fact of capitalism those in the Washington Beltway ought to learn fast. The face of America's investor class is changing. American business will look very different as we come out of this recession. Eventually, more and more people will use self-directed funds (what's left of them after the losses of 2008) to start businesses, buy franchises, and fund others' businesses. This is an extremely positive development for the future of America, as more people seek self-reliance. This transfer of capital from Wall Street to Main Street needs to be encouraged, not resisted.

So what can we do NOW to stimulate job growth?

I will detail my seven solutions, in what I call Phase II – – a "Small Business Growth Act of 2009", that would jolt America's small business community into creating even more jobs so desperately needed right now, in my next blog post . . . So stay tuned!