As fact-checkers and media figures continue to slam the Fox News-turned-GOP convention slogan “We Built It,” more business owners have come out of the woodwork to claim that they built their own businesses -- seemingly without the help of government. The Toledo Blade's convention coverage followed suit by dedicating several paragraphs to the latest small business owner to claim he “built it,” despite evidence to the contrary.  

Small business owner Steve Cohen -- a Republican Party adviser on small business issues since 2011 and the president of Screen Machines Industries in Etna, Ohio -- was given a speaking spot at the convention to discuss his business and how he “did build [his] company.”

From the Toledo Blade:

Other speakers included Steve Cohen, president of Screen Machine Industries, a family-owned manufacturer of construction and mining equipment in Etna, Ohio, who listed problems he said can be helped or hurt by government, such as patent theft, tariffs, and unfair trade practices, regulations, and taxes.

"In addition, our international competitors do not have to face the upcoming costs associated with funding a multibillion-dollar health-care plan, overreaching emission standards, and the unnecessary war on coal. These factors create a tremendous disadvantage in the global market place, he said.

“And yes, we did build this company,” Mr. Cohen said, using the line used by almost every speaker at the podium in the convention.

The problem with the Blade's presentation of Cohen's comments is that Cohen didn't, in fact, “build it” on his own. Cohen's company has received more than $2 million in federal contracts, including $220,000 in funds from Obama's stimulus program.

Given the continued distortion of Obama's comments for political advantage and the prominence of business owners who have supposedly “built it” on their own -- when in fact they have received millions in government funds -- one would expect the Blade to provide honest context for the public comments of political partisans.