US Gross National Debt Hits $30 Trillion, A New Record

The U.S. gross national debt passed the $30-trillion threshold for the first time in history, according to new data from the Department of the Treasury.

What Happened: According to the New York Times, the Congressional Budget Office projected in pre-pandemic January 2020 that the gross national debt would reach $30 trillion near the end of 2025.

This marks the second time the national debt was greater than the gross domestic product. The previous occurrence was during World War II.

The gross national debt passed the $20-billion mark in 2017. Federal spending under the Trump and Biden administrations that was designed to address the economic instability created by the pandemic brought an additional $6 billion to the debt load.

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What Happens Next: The ballooning debt was the primary reason that U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) threw a roadblock into President Joe Biden’s attempt to get the Build Back Better legislation passed in the Senate.

“I cannot take that risk with a staggering debt of more than $29 trillion and inflation taxes that are real and harmful to every hard-working American at the gasoline pumps, grocery stores and utility bills with no end in sight,” Manchin said in December when announcing his opposition to the president’s bill.

“The American people deserve transparency on the true cost of the Build Back Better Act. The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office determined the cost is upwards of $4.5 trillion which is more than double what the bill’s ardent supporters have claimed. They continue to camouflage the real cost of the intent behind this bill.”

Photo: David Maiolo/Wikimedia Commons.