June 15, 2020

Larry Kudlow covers both sides!

Those unemployed by COVID can't be incentivized not to work!

With the U.S. jobless rate still at levels not seen since the Great Depression and coronavirus-induced mass layoffs continuing across the nation, millionaire White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow complained Sunday that the $600-per-week increase in unemployment insurance authorized by the CARES Act is too generous and said the benefits should expire at the end of July.

"I mean, we're paying people not to work. It's better than their salaries would get," Kudlow said in an appearance on CNN, echoing the common Republican complaint that many U.S. workers are earning slightly more on the boosted unemployment insurance than they would at their low-wage jobs.

Meanwhile, this pandemic ain't so bad as to give (Fox Link) an ounce of worry to, you know, investors:

"The president is absolutely disinclined to shut down the economy, as is the vice president," Kudlow said Monday during an interview on "America's Newsroom." "You know, I think shutting down the economy could be worse for our health than not shutting it down."

Kudlow maintained that the spike in new cases is the byproduct of increased testing in the U.S. and are not indicative of a second wave of infections. The tally is ultimately still low, he said -- and warned the sudden flare-up in cases may be something the U.S. needs to get used to, barring the creation of a vaccine or treatment.

"These are relatively small bumps. They’re there, I'm not denying it," he said. "We are testing at 100 times the rate we were a couple of months back in March. So you’re bound to uncover a lot more cases."

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