KNOXVILLE, TN – Michael T. Strickland, Bandit Lites chair and RESTART Act proponent, urges industry members to consider adding their names to a petition from Howard Schultz, founder of Starbucks, urging Congress to pass RESTART, or something like it, now.
The open letter from Strickland to the industry follows:
Friends,
We have an opportunity to deliver perhaps the strongest relief message yet to The White House and Congress.
Friend of small business, Howard Schultz, founder of Starbucks, has created a petition and would like for everyone we can reach to sign it.
This petition urges Congress to pass RESTART, or something like it, now. You can find the petition here: https://helpsmallbusinessesnow.com/
The more names we collect the stronger the petition will be in Washington.
Please do the following:
- Click on the link.
- Sign the petition.
- Forward to everyone you can.
- Post the petition link on your social media.
It is very simple. All you enter is your name and e-mail address. Period.
This takes less than a minute.
Our goal is to collect more than 3 million signatures.
This petition supports all small businesses that are impacted.
This e-mail chain reaches over 1.2 million people after each of the organizations in this chain send it to their membership.
It is urgent that every organization please broadcast this, and that every individual send it to as many people as you know, regardless of who they are or what they do.
Anyone can sign this, not just people in small business.
Our weight is again in our numbers.
Share it by e-mail, social media and word of mouth. Here is the link: https://helpsmallbusinessesnow.com/
Thank you for your time and for all you do.
I urge everyone to take this action now as we need to hand this petition to Congress and The White House by Monday.
What we are doing really does make a difference.
The White House has just announced they will offer a $1.8 trillion dollar relief bill today.
Details of what is in it are not provided, other than airline money will be. I believe that at the least there will be more PPP and more PUA at some level. This is a $200 billion increase from the last Senate bill.
But, DO NOT STOP SIGNING THE HOWARD SCHULTZ PETITION. We do not know if RESTART is included in the proposed bill.
If it is not, we still need to push and sign the petition in order that RESTART be delivered afterwards in negotiations.
As I have stated often, there is huge support among the rank and file on both sides of the aisle for RESTART. If the White House did not include it, I believe the rank and file will push for its inclusion.
RESTART saves all of the devastated small businesses in the country. Those are all voters, as are we.
Do not stop signing and sharing the Howard Schultz petition. It is more important now than ever as there is a potential bill to insert RESTART into.
Thank you all for what you are doing.
You are our strength in the sheer numbers.
Thank you and be safe,
Michael T. Strickland
Chair and Founder
Bandit Lites
