The US national debt has surpassed another historic milestone, topping $38 trillion for the first time this week. This increase comes as the federal government continues to accumulate debt at a record-setting pace.
New data from the Treasury Department, released on Wednesday, showed that the gross national debt reached $38,019,813,354,700.26 as of October 21. This $38 trillion milestone follows just over two months after the debt reached $37 trillion for the first time in mid-August, and less than a year after it crossed the $36 trillion mark last December.
America’s debt has grown rapidly over the past decade, driven by an aging population and increased enrollment in Social Security and Medicare programs. Another significant factor behind the surging debt is the rising interest expenses associated with servicing the federal debt. These costs have escalated due to higher interest rates implemented to curb inflation, as well as the overall growth of the debt itself.
Michael A. Peterson, CEO of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, commented to FOX Business, saying, “Reaching $38 trillion in debt during a government shutdown is the latest troubling sign that lawmakers are not meeting their basic fiscal duties.”
“If it seems like we are adding debt faster than ever, that’s because we are. We passed $37 trillion just two months ago, and the pace we’re on is twice as fast as the rate of growth since 2000,” Peterson added.
He also highlighted the rising costs of servicing the national debt, noting that these costs amounted to about $4 trillion over the last decade and are estimated to reach $14 trillion over the next ten years. Peterson emphasized that interest payments “crowd out important public and private investments in our future, harming the economy for every American.”
The federal government ran a roughly $1.8 trillion budget deficit in its latest fiscal year, which ended on September 30. Projected increases in spending on entitlement programs and debt interest are expected to push deficits even higher in the coming years.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that the national debt held by the public — an alternative measure preferred by economists when comparing the size of a nation’s debt to its economy — will rise from approximately 100% of GDP in 2025 to 120% of GDP by 2035.
During this period, annual budget deficits are expected to increase to about $2.6 trillion in 2035, with total deficits over the next decade adding $22.7 trillion to the national debt. A significant portion of this increase will come from high interest costs on the national debt, with net interest payments projected to rise from $1 trillion this year to $1.8 trillion in 2035.
Over the next ten years, the CBO projects federal spending to total $88 trillion, or 23.6% of GDP, while tax revenue is expected to be over $65 trillion, or 17.5% of GDP. The level of federal spending projected is well above the historical average of 21.1% of GDP over the last 50 years, while tax revenue is slightly above the 50-year average of 17.3%.
As the national debt continues to climb, concerns grow over the fiscal health of the country and its long-term economic impact. Lawmakers face increasing pressure to address these challenges and put the nation on a more sustainable financial path.
https://nypost.com/2025/10/23/business/us-national-debt-surpasses-38-trillion-for-first-time-in-history/
