Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), recently warned about the danger from the United States government’s high debt level. She also criticized some government officials, such as US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, for believing that economic growth can make the debt problem disappear. The idea that tax cuts, deregulation, and a slightly less destructive monetary policy can produce enough economic growth to eliminate deficits has been an article of faith among many conservative economists and Republican politicians since the late seventies. An insight of supply-side economists is that, since cutting taxes incentivizes people to work and invest, government can increase revenue by cutting taxes. Over time, the growth produced by low tax rates is expected to enable government to reduce or even eliminate its debt without making spending cuts. This theory benefits Republicans who can campaign promising to cut taxes while avoiding discussing what may be unpopular spending cuts.