Small Ideas U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the objective is to reduce the role of the government. This makes sense considering the explosion in government debt to the point investor Ray Dalio says otherwise there will be a debt crisis in three years.  There are two ways to address debt, reduce spending or increase taxes. There are objections to both approaches: beneficiaries of government programs are decrying spending cuts, and increased taxation can slow investment and the economy.  Secretary Bessent also said a goal is to “rebalance” the economy toward small businesses and consumers. That can be a contradiction. Consumers benefit from efficiency, which often favors scale. The Trump Administration is even...

TAGS – North America, Macroeconomics