As a matter of accounting, a federal surplus removes an equal amount of income and savings, forcing individuals and business to borrow to spend and fall into a recession when we can borrow no more.
Deficit spending adds to our savings, providing the equity base to grow.
The combination of Reagan era tax cuts and spending hikes resulted in the mid '80's deficits that spurred growth. The late '80's tax increases led to the recession of '90. With the recent record surplus, savings has gone record negative and consumer debt record positive.