One tweet that busts the most pervasive myth about Greece’s crisis

The Greek government has faced persistent criticism for not doing enough to tamp down on spending so that the country would have enough revenue to cover its various public programs.

This chart from Simon Tilford, deputy director for the Centre for European Reform, suggests that just isn’t true: Greece has actually taken significant steps to cut government spending.

There’s arguably at least one caveat to add to this chart: back in 2007, the Greek government was bigger than the other countries in that chart. Government spending in Greece, for example, accounted for 51.8 percent of the economy in 2007 — compared to 45.9 percent in Spain, for example. So Greece arguably had more space to make cuts. At the same time, it does show that the Greek government has taken significant steps to reduce spending — ones that look like other countries in economic distress.