the government takes steps to help the economy achieve the goals of growth, full employment, and price stability. The government economic activity through two approaches: monetary policy and fiscal policy.
Monetary policy is one of the ways that the U.S. government attempts to control the economy. If the money supply grows too fast, the rate of inflation will increase; if the growth of the money supply is slowed too much, then economic growth may also slow.
Fiscal policy is the means by which a government adjusts its spending levels and tax rates to monitor and influence a nation's economy. It is the sister strategy to monetary policy through which a central bank influences a nation's money supply. Fiscal policy relies on the government’s powers of spending and taxation
national debt definition
The debt of the government; the amount of borrowing by the government to meet expenditures exceeding tax revenues.
Note : A large national debt can inhibit growth and drive up interest rates.
If, in any given year, the government takes in more money through taxes than it spends on goods and services the result is a budget surplus. If, on the other hand, the government spends more than it takes in, we have a budget deficit Historically, deficits have occurred much more often than surpluses; typically, the government spends more than it takes in. Consequently, the U.S. government now has a total national debt of more than $10 trillion.
pic taken from whitehouse.gov