The Politics of Pandemic Relief

The Daily

The New York Times

Daily News, News

4.4 • 102.8K Ratings

🗓️ 13 October 2020

⏱️ 29 minutes

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Summary

In March, Congress pushed through a relief package that preserved the U.S. economy during the pandemic. It felt like government functioning at its best. But now, that money is running out and bipartisanship has given way to an ideological stalemate. While Republicans balk at plans for further significant government spending — even those coming from the White House — Democrats are holding out for more money and a broader package of measures. The absence of a deal could have dire consequences. One economist estimates that without a stimulus package, there could be four million fewer jobs next year. We talk to Jim Tankersley, who covers the economy for The Times, about what’s getting in the way of an agreement. Guest: Jim Tankersley, who covers economic and tax policy for The New York Times. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily Background reading: After posting on Twitter that he was ending talks, President Trump reversed course, raising the stimulus offer to $1.8 trillion. But his own party may reject that plan, handing Democrats fresh leverage.While Democrats hold out for more concessions, deep divisions among Senate Republicans stand in the way of any relief bill.

Transcript

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0:00.0	From the New York Times, I'm Michael Barrow. This is a Daily.
0:10.4	Today, the economy needs it and the public wants it. So why can't Congress and the White House
0:18.4	reach a deal on a new stimulus package? My colleague Jim Tancersley on the politics of pandemic relief.
0:32.0	It's Tuesday, October 13.
0:38.9	Jim, the last time you were on the show, Congress had just passed an enormous economic relief
0:44.3	package, the CARES Act, and you walked us through that package. And it was a historic piece of
0:49.4	legislation because here was this giant bipartisan package that offered loans to small businesses,
0:57.0	bailouts for major industries like the airlines, $600 in weekly federal payments to those who had
1:04.3	lost their jobs. There was a moratorium on evictions. It felt like government functioning at its
1:11.8	best. And wow, does that feel like a really long time ago? It was a really long time ago. It's an
1:19.1	eternity in the scope of this crisis. And in particular, it's an eternity in the politics of
1:24.0	stimulus. But I think it's really important to note that it worked. The stimulus bill that passed
1:28.7	in the spring helped the United States recover faster than a lot of other economies that did not do
1:35.1	as much spending to try to prop up demand. But that help is running out. And in many cases,
1:41.1	has run out. And there is no sign of more help coming on the horizon from Congress.
1:47.9	What happened to all that money? Is it actually gone? Yeah, a lot of it is gone. A lot of it was
1:54.1	spent, particularly direct aid to people, to workers on unemployment. That money through July gave
1:59.5	them additional unemployment benefits every week that they were unemployed. Direct checks were sent
2:04.8	to individuals and households. And small businesses burned quickly through the first allocation of
2:10.8	money in the paycheck protection program, the lending program. So essentially, the aid to people
2:17.4	and small businesses that was in that first package of bills back in the spring is gone.
2:23.4	So let's talk about what has happened to the American economy since that CARES Act was passed.
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