President George W. Bush made an unprecedented visit to one of Loudoun County's small businesses, JK Moving & Storage, to speak to the county on his pro-growth and small business agenda, Jan. 19. JK Moving and Storage was selected as the host site from more than 20 Loudoun County companies suggested to the White House by the Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce.
Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce president and CEO, Randy Collins, introduced the president to the crowd of more than 350 invited guests.
Bush discussed his agenda to maintain the economy's momentum and grow small businesses. The president discussed the policies needed to keep the economy strong and growing in 2006. According to a press release from the chamber, in the last two months, the economy has added more than 400,000 jobs Ñ for a total of more than 4.6 million new jobs since May 2003. The 4.9 percent unemployment rate is lower than the average of the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. The economy grew 4.1 percent at an annual rate in the third quarter of 2005 and has been growing above 3 percent in each of the past two years.
To help small businesses, the president called on Congress to make the tax cuts permanent. If Congress does not act, a family of four making $50,000 today would eventually see its federal income taxes go up nearly 50 percent, according to the release. Small business owners would also pay more taxes, which means less money to create new jobs and buy new equipment.
"This was a great moment for us, having the president here today at JK," said JK Moving & Storage president Charles S. (Chuck) Kuhn, in a JK Moving press release. "A company such as ours, which grew from humble beginnings into a major local corporation, is truly reflective of the overall growth of our community."