Hi, Quartz members! Alexander Hamilton, whose financial acumen financed George Washington’s army, and very likely paved the way to win the American Revolution, was a big fan of the national debt. “A national debt, if it is not excessive, will be to us a national blessing,” Hamilton wrote. Not only does it let a country finance growth by borrowing to stimulate future revenue, but a national debt also gives lenders a stake in the country’s success. Suggested Reading The Boeing jet in the Jeju Air