"Between 1993 and 2001, federal debt held by the public fell from 49.2 percent of GDP to 32.5 percent of GDP. What stopped the paydown of debt wasn’t liberal big spending; it was demands from conservatives that the surplus be used to cut taxes." Err, no, I think we need to put that into the "lying toad" part of the lies, damned lies and statistics spectrum. The actual "paydown of debt" happened in the latter Clinton years. Amounting to some 5% of GDP if memory serves me right. The other 12% of GDP by which the debt fell was because GDP was growing, not debt falling. DEebt shrinking as a %ge of GDP and debt being paid down are different things.

My word, what a graph. The take off of developing country growth comes just as we get the Washington Consensus on what stupid things developing countries shouldn't do which will limit economic growth in developing countries. Mere correlation or causation?

So you go with the Milton Friedman advice to Pinochet idea then? That however horrible Pinochet was (which he was) that making things better for the people of Chile makes giving such advice OK. Good, I go with that idea too.