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| Unleash Prosperity Hotline Issue #18 Written By Stephen Moore 1) Maybe No One Should Ever Have to Go Back to Work. We took note during the CARES Act floor debate that when the Sasse Amendment to limit unemployment benefits to 100% of wages was being debated, Ron Wyden, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, said that making unemployment pay more than work had “long been a priority for Senate Democrats,” and “was not a drafting error.” It would have been foolish to think Wyden would have let that long time priority end as scheduled on July 31.And right on cue, Wyden told the New York Times yesterday that he wants “enhanced unemployment benefits to be kept in place until the unemployment rate falls below a certain level.”https://twitter.com/jimtankersley/status/1254848118774009857This chart shows that in well over half the states, workers can receive more money in unemployment benefits under the current CARES Act, with a $600 per week federal plus-up, than they would earn from working.  No word on how low unemployment would have to drop before Wyden would let the $600/week plus-up end, but paying people up to twice as much for not working as what they can make from returning to their old job is hardly the path back to a high-functioning economy. 2) And Pelosi Floats Guaranteed Income as “Solution”Not to be outdone as Democrats scramble to the far left during the Corona crisis, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is touting the solution of a guaranteed income for all Americans. No work required. That’s what Pelosi has essentially proposed when she said the next spending bill might have to include a minimum guaranteed income.“A guaranteed income for people. Is that worthy of attention now? Perhaps so,” she told an MSNBC interviewer. “Because there are many more people than just in small business and hired by small business … that may need some assistance as well.”When Andrew Yang ran for the Democratic nomination for president earlier this year, most observers scoffed at his call for the government sending checks to people under this kind of program. “Universal basic income” isn’t a joke anymore, it’s becoming Democratic dogma.https://news.yahoo.com/house-speaker-pelosi-says-may-142104859.html 3) 25% of New Yorkers Have Had the VirusThat’s a pretty big number, and it’s up a few points from the last serosurvey. It can take up to two weeks for enough antibodies to build up after an infection to test positive — that’s called seroconversion lag. So the real number that have had the virus could be much higher. That should put New York’s fatality numbers in perspective.  And those fatalities keep falling, too. 4) Toomey Plan prompts slight easing of Pennsylvania lockdownGovernor Pat Wolf loosened his iron grip yesterday only very slightly — golf courses, marinas, guided fishing trips and privately owned campgrounds may reopen May 1. That’s it. Everything else stays on lockdown until at least May 8 and maybe much longer. “Reopening these industries will help to rebuild our economy and strengthen our mental health,” Wolf said. Well, it’s better than nothing, but not much better.Wolf, who is serving his second term, has announced the state’s rural areas won’t begin a “gradual, phased reopening process” until May 8. The rest of the state comes later. Philadelphia and its suburbs will be among the last areas to ease restrictions.https://6abc.com/coronavirus-pennsylvania-covid-19-pennsylavnia-in-pa-deaths/6132996/We couldn’t help but notice that the easing on outdoor recreation appears to have been cribbed directly from the detailed plan recently released by Senator Pat Toomey, which called for immediate opening of golf courses, and other outdoor recreation along with construction and other businesses that can be conducted largely outdoors.https://www.toomey.senate.gov/files/documents/PA Starts Up Safely, A Framework for Gradually and Safely Reopening Pennsylvania’s Economy.pdf 5) Hero of the DayFrom the Land of Lincoln, a stinging rebuke to Governor Pritzker from hero Judge Michael McHaney, who ruled that the governor’s latest lockdown order “shredded the Constitution.”Per WCIA reporter Mark Maxwell, government lawyers asked whether the plaintiff had been harmed.Judge McHaney replied: “Are you seriously trying to argue that this executive order has not caused serious injury? Every second this Executive Order is in existence, it violates the Constitution, shreds the Bill of Rights.”https://twitter.com/MarkMaxwellTV/status/1254869185194229767The temporary restraining order granted applies only to the plaintiff, State Representative Darren Bailey, who is now freed from the lockdown. And the government will appeal.But we don’t expect this to be the first court victory challenging lockdown orders, and McHaney’s decision should encourage other would-be plaintiffs in Illinois and elsewhere. 6) Anti-Hero of the Day: Maryland Law Enforcement Bring Back ProhibitionOne unsurprising consequence of a lockdown is that with crime in decline, police officers engage in exaggerated enforcement of lockdown rules.That explains why 15 uniformed officers from four different Maryland law enforcement agencies took part in a raid last Sunday at Lee’s Landing Dock Bar in Cecil County. Owner Dave Carey was charged with violating the state’s lockdown order limiting gatherings to 10 people. Police claim they found some 70 people standing in line for takeout orders in front of Carey’s establishment.Carey insists he was following social distancing guidelines “to the letter of the law.” But authorities said they found some people consuming drinks while they were waiting for their orders. Carey says the action makes little sense. People frequently wait in line to go into Maryland grocery stores, but they apparently can’t do the same at his restaurant. As for the swarm of officers who showed up last Sunday, Carey professes to be amused: “If I called for a riot I wouldn’t get that kind of response.”https://www.cecildaily.com/bargaineer/cecil/port-deposit-business-owner-facing-charges-for-sunday-crowds/article_1a362489-23be-5a47-87f6-190ca95ae267.html 7) Quote of the Day “Standing up to this virus can’t be the job of essential workers only. We’ve been strong, but we’re tired, and we need the rest of you to help us. By getting back to work.” Daniel G. Murphy, MD, chairman of the Department of Emergency Medicine at St. Barnabas Hospital in The Bronx. https://nypost.com/2020/04/27/ive-worked-the-coronavirus-front-line-and-i-say-its-time-to-start-opening-up 8) This Wednesday April 29, Committee to Unleash Prosperity co-founders Steve Forbes, Arthur Laffer, and Stephen Moore along with former Obama economic advisor Robert Wolfe will participate in a webinar Money Show hosted by our friend Kim Githler. The topic: “How and When Will the American Economy Recover?” Sign up if you would like to “attend.” It’s free. Link below. https://news.moneyshow.com/moneyshow-when-and-how-will-the-american-economy-recover-source-mscom-ribbon  |
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