The US economy faced a severe recession with the onset of the pandemic in March 2020. The American economy immediately went into a recession and unemployment spiked to 14.8%. It was the highest in 72 years with such a peak witnessed after WW II in 1948. The US government introduced a slew of stimulus checks that helped prevent 11M citizens from sliding into poverty for the first time. The health department of the US revealed this.
The threat to the economy caused by the economic downturn fuelled by the pandemic was staved off by the introduction of multiple stimulus checks and the parallel initiative of supporting small businesses.
The Stimulus Check Took The Blame For The Pandemic
But even as the pandemic was arrested, and the economy boomed, the highest ever inflation in over 4 decades crept in slowly to cause inflation. And the causes have been a reason for dispute among politicians and economists.
While the Republicans have laid the blame squarely on the stimulus checks, the ruling Democrats have said that the production and supply chain issues were majorly to blame for the crisis. And also the war in Europe had a major effect on gas prices as Russia continues to be among the top three oil suppliers in the world.
Some contend that another round of stimulus checks should be immediately issued to save people from the effect of the pandemic. Americans have lived in a protected cocoon over the last two years thanks to a series of checks including the extended unemployment checks and the enhanced child tax credit stimulus checks between July and December 2021.
Even the Biden administration has cried off the fourth check, fearful of further fueling inflation even as the midterm elections are fast approaching in November 2022.
