US national debt tops $40 trillion for first time

The US Treasury Department announced that total US national debt has surpassed $40 trillion for the first time, prompting renewed warnings of a looming financial crisis as rising costs for social safety net programs and interest payments outpace revenues, which have declined due to tax cuts.

The latest daily Treasury statement showed that total outstanding public debt reached $40.047 trillion on Tuesday. This figure includes $32.266 trillion in Treasury securities held by the public and $7.782 trillion in intragovernmental holdings.

Federal debt has now more than doubled in less than a decade, up from $19.95 trillion when Donald Trump was first sworn in as president in January 2017.

Nearly a third of this increase occurred during two years of heavy government borrowing to fund COVID-19 relief measures under both Trump and former President Joe Biden. The remaining growth is attributed to the fiscal policy choices of both presidents, along with longstanding imbalances in taxation and spending.

Since Trump assumed office for a second term in January 2025, the US debt burden has risen by $3.8 trillion, bringing the total increase over his two terms to $11.6 trillion so far.

Public debt grew by $8.4 trillion during Biden’s term, which was also marked by significant spending on pandemic recovery, as well as major investments in infrastructure, clean energy, and other Democratic priorities.

Estimates from the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget indicate that policy decisions by both Trump and Biden have pushed the federal debt trajectory above what would have accumulated under the spending laws in effect when each took office.