8 • RUBY, WILDING & SWANSBURG markets dropped 26 percent. Unemployment rose to near 15 percent. 3 The out look w a s dire for our national economy. So, Congr ess got to doing what Congr ess does best: spending money. In response to COV ID’s economic impact, the government pu na sesme dp l osyeevde rwaol r kset irms ua nl uds f l opuanc kdaegrei nsg ba iums iende s saet s . s u p p o r t i n g The price ta g on the initial set of stimulus packages was around $2.2 trillion. 4 This spending increased unemployment benefits, provided Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, and e xpanded Me dicaid acce ss . It als o added TRILLION S of dollars of new d ebt to the nation al d efici t. Government spending is a common way countries battle the economic impact of disruptive events. The New Deal sought t o sp end ou r wa y out of t he Great Dep ression, a nd bstoimthuGluesoprgaeckWag.eBs utoshadadnrdesBsarack Obama ushered in large t he 2008 recession. But COVID- related spending has eclipsed almost anythi ng our countr y has experienced i n the past— in bot h size a nd sp eed. In fact, the stimulus packages of 2020 generated the most deficit spending the U.S. has incurred in modern history. 5 3 TED (The Economic Daily). U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. May 13, 2020. “Unemployment rate rises to record high 14.7 percent in April 2020.” h1t4t-ppso:/in/tw-7w-pwe.rbclse.ngto-vin/-oappurbil/-2te0d2/02.h0t2m0/unemployment-rate-rises-to-record-high- 4 Senator Mitch McConnell. Congress. March 19, 2020. “S.3548 - CARES Act.” hi dt3t p2sD: /8/2w0 w6 FwB. 1c o5nEg4r8eDs s3. Ag o2v0/Eb3i lCl /6171A61tEh6- c0o2n0g4r e s s / s e n a t e - b i l l / 3 5 4 8 / t e x t # t o c - 5 Emily Cochrane a nd Nicholas Fandos. The New York Times. May 5, 2020. “Senate Approves $2 Trillion Stimulus After Bipartisan Deal.”
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