Political, business consultant Michael Lewan urges entrepreneurs to press political leaders for support

October 27, 2003

U.S. Analyst Michael Lewan speaks during a breakfast sponsored by the U.S. Embassy and Endeavor.	Entrepreneurs and business representatives listen to Lewan's speech.

 

Small businesses will continue to play a big role in boosting the economies of the Western Hemisphere, according to Michael Lewan, a top U.S. analyst, political and business consultant.

“The creation of new businesses by entrepreneurs is the key to economic growth,” said Lewan, speaking before a group of entrepreneurs in a breakfast meeting organized by Endeavor Uruguay and the U.S. Embassy. “Sixty five percent of all new jobs in the U.S. created between 1993 and 2000 were from entrepreneurs…95 percent of all improvements on products and new inventions came from the vision of businessmen like us.”

Lewan urged the group to convince political leaders of the importance of small businesses and entrepreneurs regardless of the economic situation in the country.

“The government must be a partner to the business community, but a small partner,” Lewan said. “The government should regulate and create laws that allow businesses to prosper in the future.”

Lewan also spoke in favor of Free Trade Area of the Americas.

“With 34 countries, a $13 trillion economy and 8 billion people, this could be the largest economic engine in the world, twice the size of the European Union,” he said. But, he added, “while we are tantalizingly close to having it enacted,” the FTAA “is in trouble.”

Lewan will continue his lecture series at the University School of Social Sciences Tuesday (Oct. 28), where he will speak on “The US Political System: Two Parties, One Nation” at 7 p.m.

And on Wednesday, (Oct. 29), he will meet with the President of the House of Representatives a. I., Dr. Alberto Scavarelli, as well as with legislators from different political parties. At this occasion he will lecture on “The US Political System and the Presidential Campaign of 2004”.

Lewan has managed eight successful political campaigns. He has assisted over one hundred Senate and House members in their reelection efforts and plays an important role in the work of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and the New Democratic Network. During the last presidential campaign, Lewan was a Senior Advisor to Democratic Vice- Presidential candidate, Senator Joseph Lieberman.

He is the President of the Michael Lewan Company, which specializes in developing and executing public policy strategies for domestic and international corporations.

Lewan has represented a wide cross section of Fortune 500 companies as well as some of the most important trade associations in the American business community. Included are, The Phoenix Companies, The Principal Financial Group, Oracle Corporation, The Hartford Insurance Company, Idaho Power, McGraw-Hill, BellSouth, Mutual of Omaha, NASDAQ, Microsoft, The O’Gara Companies, DCS Inc., the Embassy of Costa Rica, the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists, The American Council on Life Insurance, The American Insurance Association, and NetCoalition.COM.

Lewan was Chief of Staff to Senator Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut (1989-1993) and Representative Stephen Solarz of New York, from 1975 to 1988. With sixteen years of Capitol Hill experience, Lewan has substantial expertise in legislative affairs and close relationships in both the House and Senate.

Lewan was a member of the Clinton-Gore National Finance Council in 1992 and 1996. He twice served on the Presidential Inaugural Committee, and is the Chair of the “Steering Committee” of the Democratic Leadership Council.

In 1994 President Bill Clinton named him Chairman of the United States Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad, which oversees cultural, religious and historic monuments and memorials of significance to Americans who trace their roots to Central and Eastern Europe. In this capacity, Lewan negotiated and signed bilateral agreements with Poland, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Bosnia, Romania, Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, the Czech and Slovak Republics.

Lewan holds an MA in Public Administration from Maxwell School of Public Policy at Syracuse University, where he is a member of the Advisory Committee.