US national debt surpasses $35 trillion for first time
Washington: The US federal government’s total public debt has surpassed $35 trillion for the first time, as recorded at the end of last week, according to the latest data released by the Treasury Department.
The total public debt outstanding climbed to $35 trillion on Friday, according to the Daily Treasury Statement released on Monday. The data is updated at the end of each business day with data from the previous business day, Xinhua news agency reported.
Just seven months ago, the US national debt surpassed $34 trillion in late December 2023. Three months before that, the US reached a historic milestone by passing $33 trillion.
“The borrowing just keeps marching along, reckless and unyielding,” said Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, in a statement. “Yet despite all the risks and warning signs, these alarm bells seem to be falling on deaf ears.”
“We are going to have to get serious about the debt, and soon. Election years cannot be an exception for trying to prevent completely foreseeable dangers — and the debt is one of the major dangers we are facing,” said MacGuineas.
According to the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, a nonpartisan organisation focused on addressing US long-term fiscal challenges, the national debt of $35.001 trillion translates to $103,945 of debt per person in the US.
“Our deficits are caused mainly by predictable structural factors: our ageing baby-boom generation, rising healthcare costs, and a tax system that does not bring in enough money to pay for what the government has promised its citizens,” the foundation said.