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   From: nospam@ix.netcom.com   
      
   The US government’s debt has topped $34 trillion for the first time, just   
   weeks ahead of deadlines for Congress to agree to new federal funding   
   plans.   
      
   Data published by the Treasury Department showed that “total public debt   
   outstanding” rose to $34.001 trillion on December 29. That figure, also   
   known as the national debt, is the total amount of outstanding borrowing   
   by the US federal government accumulated over the nation’s history.   
      
   The milestone comes just three months after the US national debt surpassed   
   $33 trillion, as the budget deficit — the difference between what the   
   government spends and what it receives in taxes — ballooned.   
      
   Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal   
   Budget, a fiscal watchdog, called the record figure “a truly depressing   
   ‘achievement.’”   
      
   “Though our level of debt is dangerous for both our economy and for   
   national security, America just cannot stop borrowing,” she said in a   
   statement Tuesday.   
      
   Also of concern is that the national debt is increasing during a time when   
   the economy is relatively strong and unemployment is low, which is   
   considered a good time to rein in the federal deficit. The government   
   often boosts spending during weak economic periods and high unemployment   
   in an effort to stimulate growth.   
      
   The national debt has become a major point of contention between   
   Republicans and Democrats, aggravating standoffs over the federal budget   
   that threaten to shut down the government periodically.   
      
   The debt has soared under both parties in recent years. Republicans say   
   federal spending programs championed by the Biden administration are too   
   expensive, and Democrats say GOP-backed tax cuts in 2017 have squashed   
   revenue. Costly federal Covid-19 relief packages, passed during both the   
   Trump and Biden administrations, also contributed to the increase in the   
   debt.   
      
   White House spokesperson Michael Kikukawa said the rising sum was “driven   
   overwhelmingly by repeated Republican giveaways skewed to big corporations   
   and the wealthy,” which led to cuts to Social Security, Medicare and   
   Medicaid that hurt ordinary Americans.   
      
   Kikukawa said President Joe Biden had a plan to reduce the deficit by $2.5   
   trillion by “making the wealthy and big corporations pay their fair share   
   and cutting wasteful spending on special interests,” including large   
   pharmaceutical and oil companies.   
      
   Whoever is to blame, mounting debt and political brinksmanship have   
   already taken their toll on America’s credit rating. Fitch cut its rating   
   on US sovereign debt to AA+ from AAA last August; in November, Moody’s   
   warned that it could also remove the US’ last perfect AAA rating.   
      
   Another potential shutdown   
   Lawmakers in Washington are facing deadlines for the passage of fiscal   
   year 2024 department budgets in January and February after Congress passed   
   two stopgap funding bills to avert government shutdowns. The fiscal year   
   started October 1.   
      
   The most recent bill, passed in mid-November, extended funding until   
   January 19 for priorities including agriculture, military construction,   
   veterans affairs, transportation, housing and the Energy Department. The   
   rest of the government was funded until February 2. It did not include   
   additional aid for Ukraine or Israel.   
      
   House Republican lawmakers are pushing to reduce spending below the levels   
   agreed to in the June debt ceiling deal, which enabled the federal   
   government to continue paying its bills in full and on time and avert a   
   first-ever default. The agreement suspended the debt ceiling through   
   January 1, 2025.   
      
   The Democrat-led Senate, however, has rejected the GOP calls for cuts.   
   Congressional leaders are currently negotiating a topline funding level   
   for fiscal year 2024 as the threat of a shutdown looms again.   
      
   Separately, House Speaker Mike Johnson wants to create a bipartisan debt   
   commission to tackle what he termed “the greatest threat to our national   
   security.”   
      
   “We remain hopeful that policymakers will take further measures to reduce   
   our borrowing either by raising taxes, reducing spending, or creating a   
   fiscal commission — or ideally by doing all of the above,” MacGuineas   
   said.   
      
   According to the Treasury, the debt that counts towards the debt ceiling —   
   which limits how much the government is allowed to borrow and is also a   
   frequent source of political brinksmanship — rose to $33.89 trillion.   
      
   Rising government debt burdens in the United States and elsewhere have   
   become a growing cause for concern because of a recent rapid rise in   
   interest rates, which has made it much more expensive to service that   
   debt. Net interest costs soared 39% in fiscal year 2023, which ended   
   September 30, compared to the previous year, according to the Treasury   
   Department. And it’s nearly double what it was in fiscal year 2020.   
      
   The meteoric rise in interest payments — which stems from both the   
   increase in the nation’s debt and the Federal Reserve’s repeated rate   
   hikes — also makes it more difficult for lawmakers on either side of the   
   aisle to achieve their fiscal priorities on Capitol Hill.   
      
   According to the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, an American bipartisan   
   group that advocates for fiscal responsibility, the US government spends   
   $2 billion a day on debt interest payments alone. Treasury expects to   
   borrow nearly $1 trillion more by the end of March.   
      
   “America’s high and rising debt matters because it threatens our economic   
   future,” the foundation said in a statement Tuesday.   
      
   It noted that within 10 years, the federal government will spend more on   
   interest payments than it traditionally has on research and development,   
   infrastructure and education, combined.   
      
   https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/03/economy/us-national-debt-34-   
   trillion/index.html   
      
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