The coronavirus surge means an economic stall is inevitable

Congress is going to need to have another big rescue debate

Nancy Pelosi.
(Image credit: Illustrated | Getty Images, iStock)

The ending of coronavirus lockdowns is plainly not working. Already we are seeing accelerating outbreaks in multiple states, particularly Arizona and Florida. One woman in Jacksonville Beach told local news that a single visit to a bar infected her and 15 of her friends. The mayor of Miami is reportedly pausing the city's reopening procedure for fear of worsening conditions.

There is a high probability in the coming months, then, that the economy is going to stall out well short of recovery, and markets will tank as a result. Democrats should be ready to exploit this possibility with a big bailout bill that both extends the best parts of existing relief measures indefinitely, and adds additional rescues, especially for state and local governments.

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Ryan Cooper

Ryan Cooper is a national correspondent at TheWeek.com. His work has appeared in the Washington Monthly, The New Republic, and the Washington Post.