If Trump were smart, he could join with Democrats to push a genuine, bipartisan stimulus bill that would boost the economy in the short and long term. But he may not be that smart, so we may be headed for a brutal political battle over what’s next.

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This gives Democrats an opening to drive a hard bargain when it comes to the response to the crisis they’d like to see — and a way to turn this to their own political advantage, as well.

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There is a sharp and genuine difference in visions here, both when it comes to crisis management and to addressing the looming risks of a serious economic downturn.

Trump’s initial impulse was for some kind of temporary cut in payroll taxes, the ones that fund Social Security and Medicare.

But as Democrats quickly pointed out, for people most in financial need — those likely to be victimized most directly by a downturn — such a cut would be a trivial amount of extra money in their pockets.

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What’s more, Trump is already treating this part of the process with the nakedly political motives he’s displayed all throughout this crisis. Trump reportedly told Republicans he wants the payroll tax cut to last through the election, because he doesn’t want taxes to rise again before he faces voters — saying the quiet part out loud.

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It’s funny that Trump might try to dictate such an outcome — on a solution Democrats don’t even want — when he’s the one most vulnerable politically, both to coronavirus’s spread and to potential economic chaos along with it.

In contrast to all this, Democrats have already released a list of measures to address the economic effects of coronavirus, most targeted at the people most directly affected. They’d pay for coronavirus testing for everyone who needs it; make sure people are fully reimbursed for treatment of the virus; and expand unemployment insurance.

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Liberal economist Jared Bernstein suggested several other ideas to us. One would be simply sending checks to moderate- and low-income households. Another would be targeting assistance to low-income workers who are sent home but don’t enjoy paid sick leave.

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A third would be to expand fiscal aid to the states, perhaps via a tweak to Medicaid formulas — which would likely gain support from Republican governors.

“Democrats should push for anything that’s truly stimulative,” Bernstein told us, adding that the underlying principle should be: “What’s the best way to help the most economically vulnerable people?”

Still another idea might be to seize on low interests rates right now — which mean the government can borrow money essentially for free — to insist on the infrastructure investments Democrats have advocated for years.

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Trump has long claimed to want infrastructure spending, but he’s tossed that aside while fully embracing Republican economics. On infrastructure, there’s a basic philosophical difference between the parties: Democrats favor spending real public money, while Republicans favor offering private companies tax incentives.

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So now might be a time to prod Trump to finally make good on his promise — albeit on Democratic terms, with a bill that actually funds upgrading roads, bridges, sewer and water systems, broadband, and so on.

All this comes as Trump is in some fundamental sense just not part of the conversation about what to do about the looming economic crisis. Trump is actually talking about helping industries such as cruise ships and airlines, and even shale companies, while (naturally) claiming everything is totally under control

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It’s also beyond galling that Trump is begging for congressional help after spending weeks attacking Democrats for supposedly hyping the crisis, solely to hurt him, when in fact their criticism has pushed the administration in a constructive direction, such as by insisting on a far better funded response.

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Incredibly, Trump is simultaneously demanding help from Democrats while telling the country that they are the ones solely to blame (along with the news media) for erroneous public impressions of the crisis.

Many observers have also rightly pointed out that when Democrats control the White House, congressional Republicans are all too willing to withhold stimulative help, since they stand to politically benefit from economic turmoil.

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And so, it might be justifiable for Democrats to play serious hardball to extract other concessions from Trump, should things really go south, such as submitting to real oversight of his administration’s coronavirus response and other governing depredations.

Indeed, one could even see Democrats simply demanding that Trump stop treating House Democrats as a fundamentally illegitimate arm of government, since he’s desperate for a bailout from them. If Trump wants the opposition’s help, it’s time to can the tinpot wannabe act and start acting like a president who understands that the opposition plays a legitimate and crucial role.

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On the politics, it’s true that Trump stands to benefit politically if Democrats assist in an effective response. But, given that Democrats won’t deny that assistance, they can also use this moment to contrast their response to the crisis with, well, Trump’s lack of one.

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“The way to hit Trump is not by denying fiscal stimulus, it’s by elevating the essential issue of competent governance,” Bernstein told us. “He and his team are massively vulnerable on that front.”

Indeed, if Democrats are able to make it clear that their solutions to the economic crisis prevailed over Trump’s haphazard, cynically motivated ones — and that their approach successfully protected the country — it might effectively land that blow.

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