Job Creators Network – Small Business Warning: Inflation, Interest Rates & the Hidden Impact of Washington Policies

Video originally published here.

Elaine Parker speaks with Caroline Melear of the R Street Institute about how federal policy decisions affect small businesses and local economies across America. The conversation examines the connection between Washington policymaking and the economic realities faced by entrepreneurs, families, lenders, and communities.

Parker and Melear discuss several major forces shaping the current economic environment, including banking regulation, access to credit, inflation, interest rates, tariffs, energy prices, and global instability. They also consider the long-term effects of Dodd-Frank, the challenges created by regulatory uncertainty, and the particular burden that shifting federal policy can place on small businesses.

The discussion highlights why community banks remain essential to small business lending, how inflation continues to affect household and business costs, and why predictable rules are necessary for investment, growth, and economic confidence.