They think the "economy" is some separate literal entity that goes around and operates on its own in these big numbers literally above society like a god, not that it's the sum of every activity on the planet, so every restaurant shutting down and every grocery store turning into a vacant ghost town because you've ordered everyone to stay locked in their homes for a year (the thread context of RedMercury's comment) isn't anything to do with "the economy" somehow. Probably because they're stupid. He wants to put "lives above the economy" not realizing that lives are the economy.