Tony Stovall

As a small business owner, we need to elect a jobs president this November — a leader who understands the important role that small businesses play in our economy.

Hillary Clinton is the daughter of a small-business owner. She grew up in the Midwest watching her father print drapes in a small plant in Illinois. She knows what it takes to run a business. Clinton has a life’s record of supporting small businesses and is fighting every day to build an economy that works for everyone — not just those at the top.

If elected this November, Clinton has already pledged to make the biggest investments in American jobs since World War II. For Detroit and Michigan’s hardworking families, that is welcome news.

Hillary wants to invest in manufacturing here in Michigan — strengthening our $82.3 billion manufacturing industry and adding to the nearly 600,000 manufacturing jobs across the state. She will rescind past tax breaks for corporations that outsource jobs abroad — instead rewarding businesses that create good-paying jobs here at home. Clinton will impose an “exit tax” on companies that move their headquarters overseas to try to avoid paying their fair share. She will cut red tape and increase access to capital for small businesses. And she understands the importance of investing in our state’s crumbling infrastructure, which has earned a “D” grade from the American Society of Civil Engineers. These investments will not only create jobs, but make us more competitive as a nation.

But Clinton’s jobs plan isn’t just about creating new jobs — it’s about breaking down barriers to employment. She will support career and technical training that responds to local employers’ needs — including by providing tuition-free community college.

Clinton’s economic plan stands in stark contrast to that of her opponent, Donald Trump. He may say he wants to “make America great,” but when he had the chance to hire American workers to make his own products, Trump chose to make his neckties overseas. And let us not forget: Trump has said it “would have been acceptable” to let the auto industry fail.

Economic experts agree that Hillary Clinton is the best candidate for our economy. A new report by independent economist Mark Zandi, a former adviser to Republican Sen. John McCain, shows that under a President Clinton, our economy would create more than ten million new jobs.

The same can’t be said about a Trump Administration. Zandi’s report found his corporate tax cuts and economic policies would lead to a “lengthy recession,” resulting in the loss of 3.4 million jobs. Even worse, independent economists say that Trump would give more tax cuts to those at the very top, while everyday Michigan residents would be hit harder.

We have tried those failed economic policies before. Michigan’s economy is still recovering from one recession — we cannot afford another one under President Trump.

For small business owners and working families this election presents a choice — a choice between Hillary Clinton, who believes we are stronger together and that we need to lift everyone up, or Donald Trump, who would have let our auto industry go bankrupt.

For me, this isn’t a choice at all.

Tony Stovall, president of the Detroit Black Chamber of Commerce, is the owner of Hot Sams clothing store.