“On March 23, 2020, the S&P 500 fell 2.9%. In all, the index dropped nearly 34% in about a month, wiping out three years’ worth of gains for the market. That turned out to be the bottom, even though the coronavirus pandemic worsened in the ensuing months and the economy sank deeper into recession. Massive amounts of support for the economy from the Federal Reserve and Congress limited how far stocks would fall. The market recovered all its losses by August.” Overstimulated? Stocks soar 75% in historic 12-month run. (I thought I was just really good at at managing my portfolio…)

+ While the federal government propped up the market, its next move will be decidedly real world. “Fresh off passage of the COVID-19 relief bill, President Joe Biden is assembling the next big White House priority, a sweeping $3 trillion package of investments on infrastructure and domestic needs.”

+ The NYT’s Andrew Ross Sorkin with an interesting look at an interesting question: Were the Airline Bailouts Really Needed? “The question isn’t whether airline employees should have been helped, it’s whether airline shareholders should have been.”