The Short Version
The empirical evidence directly contradicts this claim. The "starve the beast" hypothesis — that tax cuts causally restrain government spending — has been tested and rejected by peer-reviewed NBER research, which finds no support and even suggests tax cuts may increase spending. Real-world data from the TCJA and subsequent legislation show tax cuts expanding deficits by trillions without commensurate spending reductions. Cases where spending cuts accompanied tax cuts reflect political negotiation, not a causal mechanism, and the cuts were dwarfed by tax-driven debt increases.