Feb 14, 2018 By Jacob Calvin Meyer staff Writer jmeyer@observer-Reporter.Com 3 min read

Ivanka Trump hosted a small business roundtable in Mt. Lebanon, praising the recent federal tax cuts and deregulatory actions taken by her father, Donald Trump, in the first year of his presidency.

The Feb. 13 visit makes Trump, the first daughter and advisor to the president, now the third person from the Trump Administration in the past month to visit Pennsylvania’s 18th Congressional District in the lead-up to a special election in March. President Trump visited North Fayette in January and Vice President Mike Pence came to Bethel Park earlier this month to show support for GOP state Rep. Rick Saccone in his special election campaign against Democrat Conor Lamb and Libertarian Drew Gray Miller.

Along with Trump to host the roundtable was Linda McMahon, administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration. The roundtable, held at Potomac Mineral Group, a small business in Uptown Mt. Lebanon, welcomed several state Republican legislators and local small business leaders.

During the 50-minute discussion, Trump said the recently passed tax cuts mean the “lowest tax rate for small businesses in 80 years.”

“It’s going to be enormously beneficial as you think about how you want to continue and invest in your businesses,” she said.

Trump also discussed the deregulatory action by her father’s administration. While she said there is obviously good regulation, she also said the amount of regulation required for small business is an “enormous” and “disproportionate burden.”

After opening remarks from Trump, small business owners told her their stories and asked questions about the administration’s views on specific topics, such as healthcare, tariffs, education and women in the workplace.

On the topic of higher education, McMahon said the SBA encourages “public-private partnerships” in local communities.

“You have so many small businesses surrounding community colleges that can go in and work with the curriculum development so that those students who are coming out are already trained for those businesses in the surrounding area,” McMahon said.

An issue Trump said she’s passionate about is women in the workforce, specifically in STEAM-related fields.

“When you think about the future of work, increasingly it’s moving toward technology, across all industries,” Trump said. “To be able to operate the machinery in a plant or to be able to code and create the next apps, it’s very important that we get girls and minorities to increase their participation in those fields.”

She noted changing demographics where more households have two parents working.

“There are changing demographics, and we need to ensure that parents have the ability to thrive in dual income households,” she said.

Joining Trump and McMahon were several politicians, including Saccone, the candidate in the special election for Pennsylvania’s 18th Congressional District; state Rep. Jason Ortitay, R-South Fayette; state Rep. John Maher, R-Upper St. Clair; state Sen. Guy Reschenthaler, R-Jefferson Hills; and state Sen. Randy Vulakovich, R-Shaler.

The local business owners at the roundtable were Susan Castriota, Lori Cherup, Corina Diehl and Chris McMahon, along with Tim Kotzman and Stephen Slaughter from Potomac Mineral Group.

Trump ended the roundtable thanking the small business owners, calling them the “lifeblood of the American economy.”

“What you do each day takes tremendous courage, and you are creating jobs, creating opportunity, creating community within your towns and your cities,” she said. “We’re grateful for your optimism, and we are doing our best and out there swinging every single day at a federal level, but also encouraging at a state level for changes to be made that will continue to allow you to thrive.”