Gonna sound retarded here, but if the government is having money problems, why don't they just print more money

>muh inflation

Yea, but what if you print the money and say nothing about it? Print a trillion out of thin air, get the accountants to cook the books and say that the tax money comes from some non-existent company or even a real one (over decades, obviously, a one time payment of that size is too suspicious).

Governments already have to print money anyway to buy stuff, which isn't good for inflation. Just print it without telling anyone since markets and economies are based on vibes and beliefs, not fundamental values.