Americans are ready for a comeback. Congress must help unleash it.

Beginning immediately, the federal government should cover 80 percent of wages for workers at any U.S. business, up to the national median wage, until this emergency is over. Further, it should offer businesses a bonus for rehiring workers laid off over the past month. The goal must be to get unemployment down — now — to secure American workers and their families, and to help businesses get ready to restart as soon as possible.

This approach will prepare us to surge into recovery. Workers will benefit from the steady paycheck and the knowledge that their jobs are safe. And businesses, able to retain their workforce at little cost, will be poised for success once the economy reopens.

We must also move decisively to secure our critical supply chains and bring production back to this country. The present crisis has revealed just how vital domestic production is to our national life. And yet, for decades, an alliance of big government and big business conspired to outsource the manufacturing of our most crucial supplies and equipment to China and other overseas sites.