Cornyn Visits Tyler to Hear Small Business Concerns

TYLER — Small businesses across the country: struggling, not only to turn a profit, but just keep their doors open. KETK reports some are getting a little sympathy from Washington. Texas Senator John Cornyn dropped by Tyler Wednesday lending an ear to some East Texans trying to turn a profit in this shaky economy. Four men representing three very different East Texas businesses met with Cornyn to discuss very similar concerns. Cornyn commented that one common theme is uncertainty — about regulation, taxes, and the cost of doing business. The senator says, “Businesses like these are unwilling, for good reason, to hire new employees and to make any significant investment in growing their businesses because they just don’t know what’s gonna happen.”

Mark Chamblee, owner of Chamblee Rose Nursery in Tyler, hosted the discussion. Chamblee says the meeting definitely gave Cornyn an unfiltered view of exactly what’s happening. What the businessmen are up against are rising costs of operation and trepidation about expanding their businesses — and they don’t feel the president understands their importance to the economy. One participant chimed in that without such businesses, “There would be no taxes to collect to build a road, to build a bridge, or to hire policeman, or to get an inspector or to even fund the president’s job.”

Both the senator and the business owners believe Wednesday’s discussion will go a long way in making their voices heard in Washington. Cornyn says, “I think this is a powerful way to tell a story that people would not otherwise listen to.”