The United States national debt has officially surpassed $37 trillion, a record-breaking figure that arrived years ahead of government forecasts. According to the Treasury Department’s latest report, the staggering milestone underscores rising fiscal pressures fueled by pandemic-era borrowing and fresh legislation adding trillions more to the deficit. Economists warn that the rapid growth is placing heavier burdens on taxpayers and creating long-term risks for the economy.
Debt Reaches Historic Level
The Treasury Department confirmed Tuesday that the gross national debt now exceeds $37 trillion. This milestone was reached far earlier than projections made before the pandemic, which had estimated such levels only after 2030.
Read: Environmental Groups Sue Trump Administration Over ‘Secret Climate Report’ by Skeptics
Pandemic Borrowing Impact
COVID-19 shutdowns beginning in 2020 triggered massive federal borrowing under Presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden. Those measures, aimed at stabilizing the economy and ensuring recovery, accelerated the pace of debt growth well beyond expectations.
Also read: Residents Left With Nowhere to Go As Homeless Encampments Bulldozed in Washington
New Legislation Adds Trillions
Earlier this year, former President Trump signed Republican-backed tax cuts and spending laws. According to the Congressional Budget Office, these policies are set to add $4.1 trillion to the national debt over the next decade.
Also read: Trump Moves Closer to Invading Mexico With Military Strikes on Cartels
Warnings from Economists
Michael Peterson, chair of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, cautioned that unchecked borrowing is creating a damaging cycle: “Within the federal budget, the debt crowds out important priorities and creates a damaging cycle of more borrowing, more interest costs, and even more borrowing.”
Also read: Trump Claims Xi Promised No Invasion of Taiwan While He Remains President
Mounting Costs for Americans
The Government Accountability Office outlined how rising national debt translates to everyday consequences: higher mortgage and car loan costs, reduced business investments leading to lower wages, and increased prices for goods and services.
Also read: ICE Punishes Volunteer Nurse for Documenting Immigration Raids
Debt Rising at Faster Pace
The U.S. added $34 trillion in January 2024, $35 trillion in July 2024, and $36 trillion by November 2024. “We are now adding a trillion more to the national debt every 5 months,” Peterson noted, calling it more than double the long-term average rate.
Also read: ICE Immigration Raids Turn Huntington Park Into a Ghost Town as Families Vanish From Streets
Calls for Urgent Action
Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, warned: “Hopefully this milestone is enough to wake up policymakers to the reality that we need to do something, and we need to do it quickly.”