Paul Ryan Will Clarify Issues for Voters

All the elements of the American economy — and small business people in particular — are still waiting for recovery. In an election year, we have the opportunity to determine our course for the next four years — and the decision will surely have a big impact on what policies we put in place.

The November election must be about ideas, so that the American people can make a real choice.

The selection of Paul Ryan will clarify issues for voters. (Getty Images)

In the latest small business survey from the National Federation of Independent Business, the numbers are depressing.

The Optimism Index, based on a wide number of indicators with a score of 100 being neutral, “has averaged 90 in this recovery, now three years old, and is the worst recovery period from a recession in the NFIB survey history which began in 1973.

Nothing happened in July that would make owners more optimistic about the near-term future.”

The only way Washington will do something is if we make them do it, and to get them to do it we have to reject efforts to make this campaign about anything less than big, substantive ideas.

This election cannot be about Mitt Romney’s tax return, his dog, or his wife’s horse. In the same way, this election cannot be about Barack Obama’s birth certificate or similar distractions from the real issues.

I think the nomination of Paul Ryan as Mitt Romney’s running mate is a good sign for raising the dialogue in this year’s campaign. Love him or hate him, everyone agrees that he’s a guy who will focus on real issues and force debate.

He knows what he believes and he’s going to talk about it. That will force the other candidates, both his own running mate as well as the Obama-Biden ticket, to define their own beliefs and really talk about them.

If both sides are talking about real ideas and real plans to get our country back on track, that means the American people will be able to make an informed decision. We can vote for the candidate whose ideas will give us the kind of government and economic principles that we want.

We can talk about whether or not we helped things by bailing out the auto industry. We can talk about what kind of energy policies will help the economy best, subsidizing green companies or encouraging innovations in the oil and gas industry.

We can talk about what to do with the problems we have with unfunded pension obligations, Social Security, and Medicare.

I believe we need to get back to the fundamentals to have a real recovery. We need to emphasize the basics of real capitalism — and that doesn’t mean crony capitalism. We need real capitalism that incentivizes innovation, hard work, and small business.

Americans have a real choice to make this November, and I think Paul Ryan’s nomination will help clarify that choice. Whoever wins, we get what we deserve.

Fran Tarkenton is the Founder and CEO of OneMoreCustomer.com, a web resource for Small Business Advocacy and Education. After his Hall of Fame football career, Fran had a successful career in television and then turned to business. He has founded and built more than 20 successful companies and now spends his time coaching aspiring entrepreneurs. Read more reports from Fran Tarkenton — Click Here Now.