U.S. President Barack Obama capped a week of focusing on small businesses with a radio and Internet address in which he warned against letting small business entrepreneurs fail to recover. "If it"s one thing we"ve learned, it"s that here in America, we rise and fall together," Obama said in the address, released for delivery Saturday morning. "Our economy as a whole can"t move ahead if small businesses and the middle class continue to fall behind." "While credit may be more available for large businesses, too many small business owners are still struggling to get the credit they need," Obama said. "These are the very taxpayers who stood by America"s banks in a crisis - and now it"s time for our banks to stand by creditworthy small businesses, and make the loans they need to open their doors, grow their operations, and create new jobs." Even as he focused on helping small business, Obama continued to push for passage of a health-care reform bill by the end of the year. In his address, he said his proposals "will allow small businesses to buy insurance for their employees through an insurance exchange, which may offer better coverage at lower costs." --SPA
