Make no mistake: The Senate Republican plan to send every household $1,200 for each adult and $500 for every child is a really dumb idea. It is not just an inefficient and ineffective way to stabilize the economy — it’s also a cynical ploy by President Trump and the Republican leaders in Congress to buy the next election.

The better strategy is to get money into the hands of cash-strapped businesses that promise to use it to keep workers on their payrolls — or into the hands of laid-off workers.

If the government were to send an estimated 80 million laid-off workers a $500 check (tax free) every week for eight weeks, that would be $4,000 apiece — enough to keep their collective spending somewhere close to where it is now. And at $320 billion, that would be significantly less than the White House and Republican Senate leaders propose to spend.

This is a scary time. A lot has happened in the past three weeks. People are dying. Panic has overtaken financial markets. Countries are locking down their citizens and closing their borders. The global economy is tumbling into recession. Governments need to pull people together, act boldly and lend and spend freely.