Can Government Spending Save the Economy?

As the American economy plunges toward a recession, economists and policymakers are triaging proposals to stanch the bleeding. All of their ideas will cost money the government doesn’t have. That leaves Democrats and Republicans with two major questions: How much should be borrowed for bailouts — and what spending is needed to avoid permanent economic damage?  Guest: Ben Casselman, an economics reporter at The New York Times. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily  Background reading: Jerome H. Powell, the Federal Reserve chair, has urged Congress to spend more on economic relief — even if doing so means increasing the federal deficit. He warned that the United States was experiencing an economic hit “without modern precedent.”