Posted on 03/17/2020 1:01:14 PM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer
WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump is asking Congress to unleash a torrent of emergency economic aid - including direct checks to Americans - an effort unseen since the Great Recession to shore up households and the economy amid the coronavirus crisis.
Trump wants checks out to the public within two weeks as part of what officials said could approach a $1 trillion package. Congressional leaders vowed swift action. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin appeared on Capitol Hill to brief Senate Republicans as state and local officials acted more forcefully to restrict gatherings and mobility in the face of growing sickness.
“We want to go big,” Trump said at a White House briefing. “We want to get it done and have a big infusion.”
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell promised the Senate would not adjourn until the package was passed.
“Obviously, we need to act,” McConnell said after meeting White House officials at the Capitol.
But first, McConnell said, the Senate will vote on the House’s $100 billion package of sick pay, emergency food and free testing that’s on track for Trump’s signature.
After a savage drop at the start of the week, the stock market rose during Trump’s briefing as he and aides sketched out elements of the economic rescue package.
Bigger than the 2008 bank bailout or the 2009 recovery act, the White House proposal aims to provide a massive tax cut for wage-earners, $50 billion for the airline industry and $250 billion for small businesses.
“It is a big number,” said Mnuchin, exiting a briefing of Senate Republicans. “This is a very unique situation. We’ve put a proposal on that table that would attract a trillion dollars into the economy.” One GOP leader, Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, told reporters afterward it “could be” up to $1 trillion.
(Excerpt) Read more at apnews.com ...
Another great idea piled onto the ash heap of failure.
There’s a billion of them there.
Do you mean that China holds $1.07T in government bonds?
How are they going to know where to send the check? Not everyone makes enough money to file a tax return. It’s creepy that they would know where everyone lives.
And what about homeless people? Are they going to get a check too? I’m sure they need it.
Although it would start quite a run on the liquor stores.
this is what government is for. I 100% approve.
Bernie, stand aside, Trump is going to buy more votes.
And then Obama continued them and spent trillions more. $700 billion every year as well just for the "defense" budget, so much of it wasted defending other sovereign (and often wealthy) nations, often against non-existent "threats".
How much would we save with a complete withdrawl from Iraq, Afghanistan and Europe, and couldn't that be used to pay down the debt or reimburse taxpayers?
Depends on leverage, if we have leverage Trump will use it.
Here’s something I could get behind: Federally subsidized business interruption insurance, especially for small biz.
Not much bigger than a $2 trillion to $3 trillion budget deficit.
Many of us were all over GWB for exactly what you described. Don’t you remember how many people left this site or were banned back then because they dared to question that idiocy?
Me too. At the time I said we won't know if these Mideast interventions would turn out beneficial for 10 years. 20 years later I am disappointed in W and his administration. There is no hope for democracy in 9th century cultures. Until they find their own Jefferson or Adams, and learn to love their children more than they hate Jews, I'm OUT.
That said. If our true national security is threatened ... turn the entire Mideast s*hole country into sand. Full-on Nagasaki. And let them know in advance.
How would this aid to workers be distributed? If it has to go through state bureaucracies, will people even receive their checks? I suppose this is the time for drastic measures, but wow, is this ever a Bernie-style bailout - and coming from Trump.
Slick.
I raged at him on FR for the weak actions in Iraq vis-a-vis Al Sadr, Paul Bremer, "helping girls" and insanely arming "Afghan allies" in Afghanistan. But we always had a Hobson's choice with Bush. "Sure he tried to give us Harriet Miers, but do you want 'President Kerry??'"
It’s a little late for insurance after the interruption has already happened. But moving forward, it might make sense only if limited to risks that are not insured by commercial business interruption insurance (sort of like flood insurance), but I’m still not sure it’s a great idea.
I am definitely hoping that most of the aid to business is in the form of loans, not giveaways.
Very unwise.
That means it’s going to be $10,000,000,000,000.
So what if a $100 bill = $1
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