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U.S. President Donald Trump tweeted on Monday night that he will sign an executive order temporarily suspending immigration into the United States. The decision was made, according to the president, "in light of the attack from Invisible Enemy, as well as the need to protect the jobs of our GREAT American Citizens."
The United States is now leading the world in both confirmed coronavirus cases and death toll. The country's economy is no better. The International Monetary Fund estimated that the U.S. economy will contract 5.9 percent in 2020, the worst since the Great Depression. More than 22 million Americans have lost their jobs since the declaration of national emergency, wiping out nearly all the jobs gained in the last 11 years according to local media.
Saving lives and reviving the economy are both priorities. But apparently, Trump has chosen the economy over citizens' lives. Going against warnings from health experts, the president is eager to get as many Americans back to work as possible. To this end, Trump unveiled plans to reopen America last week. The scheduled executive order is a step forward to ensure that jobs are in the hands of Americans.
It's no secret that Trump will have to rely on a strong economy to get re-elected in 2020. Before the coronavirus outbreak, the president had been bragging about low unemployment rates on his campaign trail. With the clock ticking down to the general election, Trump cannot afford to see the U.S. economy grinding to a halt.
But the president's choice on economy is not what the American public is happy to see. A Pew survey suggests 66 percent of Americans believe the government will lift restrictions on public activity "too quickly."
Screenshot of the Pew survey.
Admittedly, there are right-wing protests going on in the United States calling for an end to lockdown policies. But the total number of protesters is small. According to a Yahoo News/YouGov survey conducted from April 17 to 19, an overwhelming majority of Americans oppose anti-lockdown protests.
Reviving the economy is undeniably important but people's lives carry more weight. This is common sense. In the midst of the deadly outbreak that has so far seen no sign of dying down, lifting restrictions on public activity is unrealistic and irresponsible. Most experts, as quoted by The New York Times (NYT), believe the scenario where lockdowns will end soon and a protective pill is almost at hand is a fantasy.
Economic losses are inevitable to save lives. Trump has to accept this simple fact before running for the next presidency. Striking a balance between public health and economic growth is a common challenge facing all virus-hit countries.
In contrast to the U.S., China has put people's lives over economic growth. The country's economy shrank by 6.8 percent in the first quarter of 2020, the first quarterly contraction since 1992. This is the sacrifice China has made for saving people's lives.
A slew of Chinese cities did not reopen until intensive surveillance found zero new cases for 14 straight days. Anyone tested positive in China was asked to be immediately quarantined and hospitalized. This has won the country more time in the fight against the virus. The earlier a country manages to put the pandemic under control, the earlier public activities return to normal, and the better the country's economy revives. But, as said in the NYT's article, compared with China and Italy, "the United States is still a playground."
For Trump, suspending immigration is not enough. Without prioritizing the need to put the coronavirus infections under control, any attempt to revive the economy will only end in vain. The president should understand this before running for this year's general election.
Script writer: Liu Jianxi
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