President Obama has taken a grilling from the media and the public for his handling of the BP oil disaster, even though, in a lot of ways, the problem is out of his hands. Which is unlike the issue of small business financing, an area where the President can be much more hands-on. We were delighted to hear that he recently met with individual franchisees at the White House to discuss the situation.
As National Restaurant News recently reported, Bobby Pancake of Buffalo Wild Wings recently was invited to the Oval Office to have a sit-down with the president to discuss running a small business. Pancake and his partner Steve Wheat were on the president’s speed dial after they were awarded the SBA’s National Entrepreneurial Success Award.
Chief among the many things discussed at the meeting were small business lending.
“We talked about getting the banks to loosen up so business can grow,” Pancake said. “We told him that if Congress were able to make changes, we would like to build a couple more restaurants and add more jobs. He was really interested in what we had to say.”
It’s even more interesting because Pancake did not vote for Obama in 2008. Regardless of politics, Obama seemed delighted to receive the input of those who had direct experience with the state of the industry- not lobbyists or people looking for political favors.
It’s nice to see a franchisee in the White House and it's assuring to see the President taking advice from people who know what’s actually happening on Main Street