Putting the economy first

The argument

Proponents of this position argue that the scale of the American outbreak followed from a political choice about priorities rather than from any absence of expert advice. Trump neglected to introduce lockdown measures on businesses despite pressure from experts. His reasoning was clear: he was not willing to sacrifice the economy for the sake of the people. On this account the decisive variable was not what was known, but what was ranked first. The record they point to is a pattern rather than a single decision. As Anthony Panke writes, "The latest development in the president's critically flawed response to the pandemic is the false optimism that he has created by stating that the country "could open for business" by Easter.". Throughout this crisis, the President has remained steadfast in his position that the economy must come first. At times, he has gone so far as to suggest citizens should sacrifice themselves to avoid plunging the country into a recession. Statements of that kind, proponents argue, do not stay rhetorical: they signal to states, employers and individuals how seriously the restrictions are meant to be taken. Criticism of that ordering was not confined to opponents. Demetri Sevastopulo and Hannah Kuchler note, 'The president has received withering criticism from many Democrats and some Republicans over the slow federal response, the inadequate level of testing and his push to ease social distancing guidelines to rescue the sinking economy'. What that criticism names is three failures moving together — the pace of the federal response, the inadequacy of testing, and the pressure to relax distancing — each of which, on this argument, traces back to the same priority. Taken together, proponents conclude, this amounts to gross mismanagement of a country in crisis and to dangerous policy priorities, and the elements compounded one another: where lockdowns were delayed and distancing was undercut in the name of business, the virus was left the conditions it needed and allowed to spread at great speed.

Context

President Trump has repeatedly said the economy must come before public health. In one statement, the President declared "the cure...[cannot be] worse than the disease." His comments referred to restrictions on business and the subsequent tanking of the economy.

Premises

Counter-arguments

President Trump is known for his outbursts, many of which do not reflect the truth. Therefore, his statements cannot be taken as such. The President repeatedly stated the economy would be reopened for business at Easter. And yet, on March 30 the President retracted his comments - pushing the date back two weeks to the end of April. His statements to the press should then be seen as fanfare, rather than intention.] That much of the nation now in lockdown speaks volumes. Above all, it indicates that Trump's 'economy first' pronunciations have little in common with his policy decisions.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P2] The government is not prioritising the economy