Dems meet with corporate leaders and things get dicey.

[sufrommich]

Corporate America descended on Capitol Hill Wednesday morning hoping to ride the small business gravy train that's been gaining steam. Instead, they caught an earful from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who didn't appreciate the message they brought.

CEOs representing 11 major corporations argued that the Democratic emphasis on small businesses missed the important role that Big Business has to play, several people in the meeting told HuffPost.

"The way I heard it was, 'Small business was important, but you have to understand that these companies in the room, we work with thousands and thousands of small businesses around the country, so when we're doing well, they're doing well,'" said Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.).

The meeting was organized by Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), chair of the Democratic Steering Committee, and took place just before Democrats voted on a jobs package that consisted mostly of tax breaks for small businesses.

W. James McNerney Jr., chairman, president and CEO of Boeing Company, was one of the more outspoken executives, arguing that helping big business was the same as helping small businesses, and that either way he supported them doing both, not one or the other. For every job created at Boeing, he said, two small business jobs are created.

His argument sparked something in Reid, who recoiled, indicating with his body language and facial expression that he didn't like what he was hearing, according to people in the room. Reid dressed down the CEO and then walked out of the meeting.

HuffPost caught up with Reid in a Senate building hallway outside a health care event and asked him about the exchange. "I think we got it straightened out. I made a couple of statements and I said, 'You're not implying we shouldn't be doing this for small business?' And they retreated very quickly. So I think we got it straightened out," he said.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/24/reid-spars-with-ceos-walk_n_475313.html

[DJ13]

1. Waaaaa .......where's ours?!

[gratuitous]

2. Oh, won't someone PLEASE think of Boeing?

These manly captains of industry are sure quick to get their hands out when they're looking for governmental largesse. The responsibilities of good corporate citizenship? Eh, not so much then. In fact, if you're going to get all snitty about property taxes and schools and infrastructure maintenance, maybe it's time we just took our ball and went somewhere else if you're not going to bow down to large corporations like you should.

[Bonhomme Richard]

3. Businesses don't create jobs with tax cuts.

If they did we would have 100% employment by now. Big corporations, from what I can gather, use tax cuts to to stuff the company's profit margin..ergo bonuses. It doesn't change how a company does business. Just look at Whirlpool and what they did after getting stimulus money. On the other hand small businesses might be able to keep their doors open with a decent tax cut. That's the difference. The only thing that creates jobs are sales orders and if people aren't buying then businesses aren't makin'.

[Blue Owl]

4. The Cheap Labor Republican CEO's

want all the $$$ for themselves -- how will Harry Reid find a way to give it to them while maintaining his status as a "Democrat"?

C'mon Harry, surprise me for once and make those fuckers suck it up.

[sufrommich]

5. I agree. Do more than just walk out of the room.