U.S. economy faces severe strains after election with Washington potentially paralyzed

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Economic Policy

U.S. economy faces severe strains after election with Washington potentially paralyzed

Political gridlock looms over possibly turbulent period for economy amid spike in coronavirus cases, expiration of federal benefits

By Jeff Stein
November 2, 2020 at 6:00 a.m. EST

America’s economy faces severe new strains in the two months between Tuesday’s election and January, a period when Washington could be consumed by political paralysis and gridlock. ... This window is typically used by successful presidential candidates to plan for the outset of their administration, but several large economic sectors are bracing to be hit by both an increase in coronavirus cases and the arrival of winter weather.

These factors could exacerbate extreme slowdowns in the travel, restaurant and hospitality industries, and further depress an oil industry already roiled by low prices. ... Millions of Americans are also at risk of having their power and water shut off with unpaid utility bills coming due, while protections for renters, student borrowers and jobless Americans will expire by the end of the year absent federal action.

The looming economic pressures come amid a breakdown in bipartisan stimulus negotiations on Capitol Hill and an acrimonious turn in talks between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. Pelosi and Mnuchin, who have worked together throughout the year to successfully secure passage of trillions in emergency aid, instead traded barbs in recent days, with Pelosi saying Tuesday the administration had “failed miserably” and Mnuchin attacking Pelosi’s “ALL OR NONE approach” in a letter on Friday.

President Trump and Pelosi have both said they would pursue an economic relief deal during the lame-duck session of Congress, but compromise has proved elusive. ... “All signs suggest that we’re in for the worst of this at the same time the situation in Washington is also becoming its worst and most horrible,” said Michael Strain, economic expert at the American Enterprise Institute, a right-leaning think tank.

{snip}

Jeff Stein
Jeff Stein is the White House economics reporter for The Washington Post. He was a crime reporter for the Syracuse Post-Standard and, in 2014, founded the local news nonprofit the Ithaca Voice in Upstate New York. He was also a reporter for Vox. Follow https://twitter.com/jstein_wapo

[Warpy]

1. Not as paralyzed as it has been

since the new Congress is sworn in on Sunday, Jan 3. If enough of us have had enough, that means McConnell's logjam will be dynamited shortly thereafter, although I doubt many bills will be submitted to Dumdum.