Paul Krugman: ‘Crazy’ to reopen economy in the next few weeks

New York Times columnist Paul Krugman said Monday that it would be “crazy” for the U.S. economy to be safely reopened in a matter of weeks.

In an interview with CNN, Krugman warned that the U.S. has not yet reduced the coronavirus’s spread enough to warrant the reopening of the U.S. economy, adding that places such as Denmark and China that have begun to reopen some sectors of public life risk a resurgence of the virus.

“I think we’re waiting to see whether places that seem to have the thing under control and start to try to return … to normalcy, whether they have second-wave outbreaks,” Krugman said, pointing to a recent second spike in cases in Singapore.

“The closest model we have is the influenza of 1918, 1919, where it turned out that places that were too eager to return to normal life paid the price,” he added. “But one thing that we know for sure is that the United States is nowhere close to that point. So the idea that we can reopen in a matter of a few weeks is crazy.”

Krugman’s comments come as President Trump has talked publicly about his considerations around issuing guidelines directing states to resume normal economic activities and end lockdown orders related to the coronavirus. Some state governors have also formed regional groups to discuss joint efforts to reopen their economies.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) has said that recommendations for the state and neighboring states such as Connecticut and New Jersey concerning the resumption of normal business could come within weeks, while cautioning that the state would be “smart” about when to reopen.

“We didn’t start with a timetable. We said we want it ASAP, but we want it smart. This is about being smart first, not political,” the governor said Monday.