Last updated on March 24th, 2020 at 08:42 am
Billionaire Bill Ackman, the CEO of Pershing Square Capital, took to Twitter to demand President Donald Trump order a 30-day nationwide shutdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
Shutting down the country and closing our borders “is the only answer,” Ackman said in response to a growing public health crisis that has claimed the lives of at least 117 Americans nationwide, with no sign that the rate of infections will drop anytime soon.
“Tell all Americans that you are putting us on an extended Spring Break at home with family. Keep only essential services open. The government pays wages until we reopen,” he said.
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Mr. President, the only answer is to shut down the country for the next 30 days and close the borders. Tell all Americans that you are putting us on an extended Spring Break at home with family. Keep only essential services open. The government pays wages until we reopen.
— Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) March 18, 2020
Ackman pointed out that a shutdown is inevitable, though it is currently not happening “in a controlled fashion which is extending the economic pain and amplifying the spread of the virus.”
A “30-day rent, interest and tax holiday for all” would alleviate economic concerns, he said.
No one defaults, no one forecloses. A 30-day rent, interest and tax holiday for all. The shutdown is inevitable as it is already happening, but not in a controlled fashion which is extending the economic pain and amplifying the spread of the virus.
— Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) March 18, 2020
Exponential math is not on our side, Ackman continued, noting that postponing a shutdown would cost possibly “millions of lives” while decimating the economy.
With exponential compounding, every day we postpone the shutdown costs thousands, and soon hundreds of thousands, and then millions of lives, and destroys the economy.
— Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) March 18, 2020
“With your leadership, we can end this now. The rest of the world will follow your lead,” he concluded.
Please send everyone home now. With your leadership, we can end this now. The rest of the world will follow your lead. A global Spring Break will save us all.
— Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) March 18, 2020
Ackman’s call comes as health experts advise people around the country to stay home and practice social distancing in an attempt to “flatten the curve” of the virus. There are nearly 8,000 recorded cases across the United States, though that number is bound to be significantly higher in light of a nationwide testing shortage many have attributed to the federal government’s botched response.
Alan is a writer, editor, and news junkie based in New York.
