The US Treasury Department said on Tuesday that the US federal government’s total public debt reached $34 trillion for the first time, as members of Congress prepare for another series of battles over federal funding in the coming weeks.
The Daily Treasury Statement for Friday showed that the total public debt outstanding rose to $34.001 trillion from $33.911 on Thursday.
On 30 September, the Senate passed a last-minute bill to fund the federal government through 17 November, narrowly avoiding a shutdown.
On 17 November, President Joe Biden signed a temporary spending bill to avert a government shutdown and postpone a fight with Republicans in Congress over the federal budget for the new year.
Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a fiscal watchdog group, called the $34 trillion federal debt figure “a truly depressing achievement,” attributing it to political leaders’ unwillingness to make difficult fiscal choices. She said:
“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.”
Congress returns to Washington next week to meet deadlines of 19 January and 2 February to settle government spending through September, amid Republican demands to cut discretionary spending for fiscal 2024 below limits agreed in June. Lawmakers also hope to pass emergency aid for Ukraine and Israel, possibly with provisions for US border security attached.
