Yes, our only ways out are to increase taxes, decrease spending, and grow our way out of it. Options 1 and 2 prevent option 3 from happening, and will actually cause us to shrink, making the problem worse. Option 3 can't happen on it's own, because we are spending way way faster than we're growing. So that leaves us with increased taxes and decreased spending... 2 things our politicians refuse to do. At some point, they'll have no choice, and by that point our interest payments will be so high that the cuts will have to be that much deeper to actually pay down any of the debt and improve the situation. So... drastic cuts and higher taxes... how do you think that ends? A shrinking economy that raises less money in taxation, and even more drastic cuts required, leading to a depression and a dramatically decreased ability to respond to emergencies like a war with China. We're so focused on today's problems that we are creating a huge problem in our near to medium term future.
There is a reason why basically everyone involved in the actual day to day job of managing the economy (and not sitting in their ivory tower at some university), from Yellen to Powell to the leaders of our banks and the institutions buying the debt, agrees that the path we're on is unsustainable. We've got to start writing letters to our leaders and get them to open their eyes before it's too late.