Can You Believe It? National Debt Now $22 Trillion.
By Associated Press
Published 5 years ago on
February 13, 2019
Share
WASHINGTON — The national debt has passed a milestone, topping $22 trillion for the first time.
The Treasury Department’s daily statement showed Tuesday that total outstanding public debt stands at $22.01 trillion. It stood at $19.95 trillion when President Donald Trump took office on Jan. 20, 2017.
The debt figure has been accelerating since the passage of Trump’s $1.5 trillion tax cut in December 2017 and action by Congress last year to increase spending on domestic and military programs.
The debt figure has been accelerating since the passage of Trump’s $1.5 trillion tax cut in December 2017 and action by Congress last year to increase spending on domestic and military programs.The national debt is the total of the annual budget deficits. The Congressional Budget Office projects that this year’s deficit will be $897 billion — a 15.1 percent increase over last year’s imbalance of $779 billion. In the coming years, the CBO forecasts that the deficit will keep rising, top $1 trillion annually beginning in 2022 and never drop below $1 trillion through 2029. Much of the increase will come from mounting costs to fund Social Security and Medicare as the vast generation of baby boomers continue to retire.
The Trump administration contends that its tax cuts will eventually pay for themselves by generating faster economic growth. That projection is disputed by many economists.
Despite the rising levels of federal debt, many economists say they think the risks remain slight and point to current interest rates, which remain unusually low by historical standards. Still, some budget experts warn that ever-rising federal debt poses substantial risks for the government because it could make it harder to respond to a financial crisis through tax cuts or spending increases.
Michael Peterson, head of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, says “our growing national debt matters because it threatens the economic future of every American.”
RELATED TOPICS:
Slumping California Risks Losing World’s ‘5th Largest Economy’ Title
Economy /
5 hours ago
Ukraine Uses Long-Range Missiles Secretly Provided by US to Hit Russian-Held Areas, Officials Say
World /
7 hours ago
Boxing Star Ryan Garcia Wants to Meet Netanyahu, Pledges Aid for Gaza Children
Sports /
9 hours ago
Legislation Pandering to Tribal Casinos Is a Bad Bet for Fresno Cardroom Employees
Opinion /
10 hours ago
About 1 in 4 US Adults Over 50 Say They Expect to Never Retire, an AARP Study Finds
Economy /
10 hours ago
Biden Signs a $95 Billion War Aid Measure With Assistance for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan
National /
10 hours ago
Latest
Videos
World /
4 hours ago
Police Tangle With Students in Texas and California as Wave of Campus Protest Against Gaza War Grows
Economy /
5 hours ago
Slumping California Risks Losing World’s ‘5th Largest Economy’ Title
World /
7 hours ago
Ukraine Uses Long-Range Missiles Secretly Provided by US to Hit Russian-Held Areas, Officials Say
Sports /
9 hours ago