America’s Coronavirus Package: Like a War Effort

The scope of the rescue package illustrates the scope of the shock America is facing right now. The only question is whether the president will be able to cope with the situation in the long run.

At first, the Federal Reserve went into battle to prevent the American economy from the crash of a deep recession and to steady the markets. Now, the president and Congress have followed suit with a rescue package worth almost $2 trillion meant to protect companies and whole economic sectors from collapse, to support employees and consumers and to equip the health care system.

It is the biggest rescue package in American history and is being compared to a war effort. That alone indicates the severity of the pandemic and how gravely it is impacting the U.S. economy and society. It is a shock known only in science fiction movies; and, by the way, similar to the shock of 9/11. Now like then, we need to make the greatest efforts to avoid consequences that will sweep everything away. In this respect, the size of the financial package is justifiable, and the agreement that Republicans and Democrats have reached is commendable.

President Donald Trump is concerned about the consequences of the pandemic as well. If he had it his way, the entire country’s economy, which is now restricted in many places and in many ways, would be at full speed again in 2 1/2 weeks. This is a bold plan, which, above all, reflects the president’s political ambitions and only purports to express concern about long-term damage to the economy.

Will Trump Be a Successful Crisis Manager?

At the moment, there are no grounds to be optimistic. The number of infections and the death rate are rapidly increasing in the U.S. New York is an epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak. Nobody knows when the crisis will be under control. Setting the date for a return to normal now only creates new insecurity. What if the epidemic explodes in other parts of the country like it did in New York?

In the battle against the virus, America, too, is breaking new ground politically, economically and socially. Its arsenals are fully stocked. How the situation will turn out politically in the end, nobody can predict.

Trump won’t be able to bask in the glow of favorable economic data anymore. But maybe he will be able to do so in being a successful crisis manager. He surely cannot be blamed for the shock that is COVID-19, but he can be blamed for the nonsense he spouted in the beginning.