Here's a brief economic history of the last quarter-century in taxes and growth.

In 1990, President George H. W. Bush raised taxes, and gross domestic product growth increased over the next five years. In 1993, President Clinton raised the top marginal tax rate, and GDP growth increased over the next five years. In 2001 and 2003, President George W. Bush cut taxes, and we faced a disappointing expansion followed by a Great Recession.

Does this story prove that raising taxes helpsGDP? No.

Does it prove that cutting taxes hurts GDP? No.

But it does suggest that there is a lot more to an economy than taxes and that slashing taxes is not a guaranteed way to accelerate economic growth.