7 questions about the national debt hitting $40 trillion
This explainer breaks down the milestone of U.S. gross federal debt crossing $40 trillion, clarifying what "gross debt" actually measures (including intragovernmental IOUs like the Social Security Trust Fund) and tracing the run-up to pandemic-era shocks plus sustained post-2020 deficits driven by bipartisan spending and tax cuts. It contextualizes the figure against other nations' debt-to-GDP ratios—noting the U.S. sits at 125.8%, behind Japan, Italy, and Greece among others—while cautioning that Japan's domestically-held debt structure makes its situation less comparable or reassuring than it might seem. The piece closes with a warning that interest payments now exceed defense and Medicare spending, and flags several fiscal watchdog groups pushing Congress toward earlier, less painful reforms.