It's a beautiful day, the beaches are open, and people are having a wonderful time.

Donald Trump's critics have used that movie quote to liken him to Larry Vaughan, the villain

in jures, the politician who disregards the shark threat to keep the resort open for business.

Amity is a summer town, Vaughan says.

We need summer dollars.

Before Boris Johnson was the UK's prime minister, he named Mayor Vaughan as his political hero.

Quote, he kept the beaches open, he did the right thing.

We don't know President Trump's take on jures, but the tension between public health advice

and the need to avert economic calamity has never been clearer.

With 220 days to go, this is Chex and Balance.

I'm John Prado, the economist's US editor, and this is a podcast about the 2020 elections.

Each week we take one big theme, shaping American politics and explore it in depth.

Today, Canada can America avoid a prolonged economic slump.

Congress has stumped up nearly $2 trillion to rescue the American economy, but is it enough?

White House advisors worry the damage inflicted by a sustained lockdown may be worse than

the toll of the virus itself.

Before COVID-19 hit, President Trump staked his re-election on his success in juicing

the economy.

Now, he wants the country back open for business by Easter, just two weeks from now.

In this episode, we'll look at one of the worst hit sectors, restaurant trade, and find

out what history suggests might be missing from the current bailout plan.

With me as ever, to talk about all of this, Charlotte Howard, the economist's New York bureau chief,

...