National debt crosses $40 trillion
The Hill · C · trust 48/100
Comments: by Julia Shapero and Max Rego - 08/19/26 5:23 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Julia Shapero and Max Rego - 08/19/26 5:23 PM ET Comments: Link copied NOW PLAYING The U.S. national debt crossed $40 trillion on Tuesday, according to newly released data from the Treasury Department.
It marks a key milestone for the U.S., which has seen its total outstanding debt double over less than a decade. This sum first crossed the $20 trillion mark in late 2017 and reached $39 trillion just five months ago in March.
Fiscal hawks immediately slammed the development. Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, called on lawmakers to take action, arguing that “no one knows how many more of these milestones America can take.”
“Whatever motivation our elected officials need to find to finally take action – whether the worries of their constituents back home, the alarm signaled by financial markets, competition from abroad, or the consequences of failing to act – they ought to find it soon,” she said in a statement .
She argued “other warning signs are flashing too” — pointing to the rising ratio between the debt and the size of the economy. As of the first quarter of 2026, the national debt represented about 122 percent of U.S. gross domestic product, which sat at $31.87 trillion.
Michael Peterson, CEO of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, framed the rising debt in the context of affordability — an issue that has taken center stage in the upcoming midterm elections.
“The more debt we take on, the more interest costs we have to bear, which now even exceed the cost of national defense,” Peterson said in a statement .
“And every trillion we add to our debt contributes to higher interest rates and inflation, increasing the mortgages, car loans and credit card bills of all Americans,” he continued. “At the same time, debt harms economic growth, slowing wage increases while the cost of living continues to rise.”
Libertarian Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), a fiscal hawk, brought attention to the milestone in a post on social media , simply writing, “we just hit $40 trillion.”
The federal government owes more than $32.2 trillion to outside entities — debt held by the public — including businesses, state and local governments and foreign governments and businesses.
It owes nearly $7.8 trillion to itself, with the CRFB noting the vast majority of it is debt held in government trust funds, such as Social Security .
The debt surpassing $40 trillion comes a day after the 30-year Treasury bond yield soared above 5.3 percent, marking its highest point since April 2007 , months before the start of the late-2000s financial crisis that upended the global economy.
The 30-year bond yield has since ticked down to below 5.2 percent, after the Treasury Department said Wednesday it will double the maximum amount of U.S. debt it can buy back starting next month.
The change will be in effect from Sept. 9 through at least Nov. 4, with the Treasury noting it will provide an update at its next Quarterly Refunding on the latter date.
Since the start of President Trump’s second term, the national debt has grown by $3.83 trillion. The country added $7.78 trillion to the deficit over his first four years in office.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the GOP’s signature tax and spending legislation Trump signed into law in July 2025, is expected to add $3.4 trillion to the federal budget deficit through 2032, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated last year .
Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio) called the country’s fiscal trajectory “not sustainable.”
“Runaway spending and debt weaken the dollar, drive up costs, and make everyones paycheck worth less,” Davidson wrote Wednesday on X . “Congress needs to take this seriously by rooting out more waste, making real spending cuts, and getting us back to a balanced budget.”
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