WP: "economic decline will be sharper and more painful than during the 2008 financial crisis"

[honest.abe]

From the Washington Post..

The U.S. economy is deteriorating more quickly than was expected just days ago as extraordinary measures designed to curb the coronavirus keep 84 million Americans penned in their homes and cause the near-total shutdown of most businesses.

In a single 24-hour period, governors of three of the largest states — California, New York and Illinois — ordered residents to stay home except to buy food and medicine, while the governor of Pennsylvania ordered the closure of nonessential businesses. Across the globe, health officials are struggling to cope with the growing number of patients, with the World Health Organization noting that while it required three months to reach 100,000 cases, it took only 12 days to hit another 100,000.

The resulting economic meltdown, which is sending several million workers streaming into the unemployment line, is outpacing the federal government’s efforts to respond. As the Senate on Friday raced to complete work on a financial rescue package, the White House and key lawmakers were dramatically expanding its scope, pushing the legislation far beyond the original $1 trillion price tag.

With each day, an unprecedented stoppage gathers force as restaurants, movie theaters, sports arenas and offices close to shield themselves from the disease. Already, it is clear that the initial economic decline will be sharper and more painful than during the 2008 financial crisis.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/03/20/us-economy-deteriorating-faster-than-anticipated-80-million-americans-forced-stay-home/

It starting to feel like the cure might be worse than the disease. Seems like we lose no matter what.

I think our leadership needs to assemble the smartest people in the country (from both sides of the isle) to figure out how best to deal with this extraordinary situation. If this isnt handled correctly we could be headed for disaster. I hope Joe Biden will take the lead on this since the Idiot in the WH is hopeless.

NOTE: This article is behind WP paywall. I was able to access using incognito mode in Chrome.