First you have to identify potential customer, then you have to figure out the minimum in extra labor and other resources you need to reach and serve those customers, then, if you can't finance expansion yourself and the return for doing so looks good, you go to the bank.

I would venture to say that most small firms are not looking at loans to hire new people.  What we are faced with is laying off someone that has worked with you for 10 years, whose family you dine with and sometimes even vacation with.

As a small business owner, are you willing to take a loan against your house to keep people employed or hire new people in this economy?

The problem is 17.5% UE and fear (for those who are still employed but saving like crazy because they fear getting laid off).  

A tax break for hires does not monetize for at least 18 months.  Companies are not going to hire 50k employees for a 5k tax credit.  However, those with high attrition will receive a heckuva credit next year 2011 and will reinvest some of that into the business.

It is a great reelection plan and aside from immediate infrastructure spend how else are jobs going to be "created?"

Our representatives conceded 10% UE in 2009 with the stimulus figures they provided in worst case scenario (they actually were under but still a concession) and they are conceding 10% again for 2010.  

But.....unemployment/underemployment is 10-20%, not 100%, and the banks' suicidle tight credit policy guarantees that any recovery will be cut off at the knees unless they change.

One small example: Our family is in the commercial/industrial maintenance business; blacktop, sealcoating, striping, speed bumps, etc. Fortunately for us it's not affected as much by the depression in our country because large real estate complexes must maintain their properties regardless of the larger economy. So here we are, Spring just ahead, and the time we normally would be stocking up on materials we'll need. Our tanks hold about 40,000 gals. of sealant at a cost of about $65,000. We have signed contracts with Hilton, Ramada, Walmart, plus Hospitals, schools, shopping centers, etc.

In prior years banks would fight with each other to loan us the money to stock up. This year. Nada, Zilch, Drop dead!

Reagan implemented Keynesian ecomonics--increased government spending (in the form of the defense build up) and decreased taxes, and of course the deficit increased substantially....

Bush II's tax cuts did not matter.....How well did the economy do during 2000-2008 on job creation?  Or on any measure?

When the Democrats took over both Houses of Congress  in 2/2007 unemployment was under 5%, gasoline was around $2.00 and the Dow around 14000...

I think that answers your question.

By mid summer of 2008 the unemployment rate was going straight up, the market was going straight down and gasoline was holding steady at around $4.00-$4.50. All that in a short 17 months. In October the Democrats passed a bank bailout bill with no controls on so the bankers did what came naturally, they stole their share and called it bonuses. Actually Freddie Mae and Fannie Mac had been doing that for years, but since those guys were Demos no one thought anything about it.

In 2008 the number was 70,000. The amount of money it covered was $17.96 BILLION.

http://www.inc.com/news/articles/2008/10/government-loans.html

It is ludicrous to suggest that this doesn't directly support your business -- try opening a semiconductor fab in Haiti.

I don't know exactly what business you're in, so I can't give you more unambiguous clear examples of how Uncle Sam made it possible.

But the unreasonable ones have a point in that with out government we wouldn't have a country.

Now both sides can yell at me.

1 in 5 houses are underwater. As of November of 2009(you'll notice that is AFTER what you call bottom) 1 in 7 homeowners was at least one month behind on their mortgage. 4.47% of homes were in foreclosure. Those numbers were double the 2008 numbers.

Furthermore, the problem is no longer limited to sub prime borrowers but has spread.

Additionally, the number one cause of foreclosure now is unemployment. That's a pretty significant hurdle to overcome when you have people saying that unemployment is not going to improve anytime in the immediate future.

http://www.inteldaily.com/news/139/ARTICLE/12791/2009-11-20.html