While the Broadbent and Daly study may provide useful insights on the potential for fiscal adjustments to boost growth, its relevance to the current situation in the United States is questionable. The vast majority of instances of fiscal adjustment took place during periods when economies were near or above potential GDP. In only 6 of the 29 fiscal adjustments that were tax- driven was the gap between potential and actual GDP even as large as one percentage point. In only two instances, Netherlands (1983) and Norway (2004-06), were the gaps more than two percentage points of GDP, as shown in Figure.
