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2008 National Small Business Summit Speakers

Join NFIB and ebay for this year’s small business conference in Washington, D.C. This is one small business event you don’t want to miss. To learn more about the keynote speakers for this year’s summit, see their bios below.

Sen. John McCain

U.S. Sen. John McCain has a long career of public service and is a lifetime Guardian of Small Business Award winner. Sen. McCain is the presumptive Republican nominee for U.S. President. He is currently the Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Armed Services and serves on the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, and the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs.

Hear Tony Snow speak at this year’s small business conference in Washington, D.C. Tony Snow, CNN Political Commentator and Former White House Press Secretary

Tony Snow served as the White House press secretary for the George W. Bush administration from May 2006 to September 2007. In 1991, he served as director of speechwriting and deputy assistant to the president for media affairs for President George H. W. Bush. In April 2008 he joined CNN as a political commentator.

Hear Trent Lott speak at this year’s small business conference in Washington, D.C. Trent Lott

Trent Lott served the United States for 35 years in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, and in 2007 announced his resignation. He served as the House Republican Whip in 1981, and forged the bipartisan alliance that enacted President Ronald Reagan's economic recovery program and his national security initiatives.

Hear John Breaux speak at this year’s small business conference in Washington, D.C. John Breaux

Sen. John Breaux is a voice and force in the American political arena and has led a long and distinguished career in Congress. His latest venture is cofounding the Breaux-Lott Leadership Group, an all-in-the-family lobbying firm for bipartisan solutions, with former Sen. Trent Lott.

Hear Roger T. Staubach speak at this year's small business event in Washington, D.C. Roger T. Staubach

Roger T. Staubach, executive chairman of the Staubach Company, founded the company in 1977 to exclusively service the needs of users of commercial real estate. Under his guidance, the company became a market leading global real estate advisory firm that delivers cost-effective solutions for office, industrial and retail clients.

Charlie Cook to speak at 2008 NFIB National Summit Charlie Cook

Widely regarded as one of the nation's keenest litmus testers on U.S. elections and political trends, Charlie Cook is the publisher of The Cook Political Report and a political analyst for the National Journal Group, where he writes weekly for National Journal magazine and CongressDailyAM.

Hear Stuart Rothenberg speak at the 2008 NFIB Small Business Summit Stuart Rothenberg

Stuart Rothenberg has his finger on Washington's political pulse. As the editor and publisher of The Rothenberg Political Report, a biweekly newsletter that reports on and analyzes governmental developments that affect the country today, Rothenberg is the go-to authority on the U.S. House, Senate, gubernatorial and presidential elections.

Here's what past attendees had to say

"It was my first Summit and I was extremely impressed. The speakers were great and it is worthwhile to be in a group of like-minded people - not Democrats or Republicans, but small-business people."

Tom Ulbrich, Mow More Supplies,
Alden, N.Y.

"With the commitment of money and time to attend it is important to have an organized Day on the Hill. The impact NFIB has means that Congress has to listen to us. As individual small-business owners, we don't have the ability to call and get a Hill appointment, but NFIB can get it for us. That is something other organizations cannot do."

Gordon Whitbeck, Whitbeck Laboratories, Springdale, Ark.

"The Hill visits were pretty effective. We shook up the Senate and House buildings for at least a day. I think it is much better to be there in person than to rely on phone calls and e-mails. When there is a large group on the Hill, lawmakers know these people are serious."

Douglas Furnell, Western Metal Company, Louisburg, Kan.

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