Dear Mr. Bush: Thanks For Your Concern

The President pays a call on an Inc. letter writer.

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When Jack Stack wrote a letter to President Bush as part of a story that appeared in the January issue of Inc., he never expected that the commander in chief would show up on his doorstep a month later. In "Dear President Bush," 18 entrepreneurs penned letters to the President with their complaints, compliments, and requests. Manufacturer Stack (for more on his business, see page 134) suggested that the administration work harder to explain advantageous, yet confusing, provisions in the recent tax cuts.

A few weeks after the letter was published, Stack heard from the White House. The President was interested in visiting his company, SRC, which is based in Springfield, Mo. Speaking to a crowd of 600 in mid-February, Bush said, "It helps when the small-business owners have got more money in their coffers. And that's what tax relief does." On the subject of the Inc. letter, Stack says the President promised him he would be "like a conveyor belt"--cranking out the message over and over until everyone understands it. Stack--who previously backed Dick Gephardt for President--says meeting Bush was a thrill. "It's not every day that Air Force One flies over your factory," he says.