Washington Post reporter Jeffrey Stein warned on Thursday about “unimaginable consequences” the country could face without another COVID-19 stimulus package, days after President Trump called off negotiations.
Stein, an economics reporter for The Post, told Hill.TV’s “Rising” that economists predict 50 percent of small restaurants in the U.S. could shut down over the next six months, which he called “a very scary number.”
“Think about your 10 favorite restaurants near you. Imagine if five of them – all of their kitchen staff, all of their wait staff, the servers, all of them being laid off,” he said. “And then, take that across the entire country. I mean it’s unimaginable consequences.”
The reporter cautioned about an upcoming “nightmare scenario” in which Washington, D.C., experiences “complete paralysis” before Election Day and potentially has a lame duck president for three months ahead of Inauguration Day.
“At that same time that Washington is at its maximum paralysis we’re going to see a huge increase in cases, according to Dr. [Anthony] Fauci and most of the scientific experts, and the concurrent wave of shutdowns and restaurant closures and economic headwinds,” Stein said.
“So I’m looking at that period as being very frightful for economic news,” he added.
Trump called off talks for another relief bill Tuesday after months of discussions. But Trump tweeted later that day advocating for some coronavirus aid, particularly for the airline industry and small businesses.
The president said Thursday he is now pushing to negotiate a “bigger deal” than one narrowly focused on rescuing airlines, though Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) indicated that a standalone bill was off the table.
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