America's Debt Hits $40 Trillion: Over $1T Interest Bill Nearly Matches Defense Spending

The national debt reached approximately 122% of US economic output in early 2026. (Credit: MeanieHyaena / CC BY 4.0, cropped)

Americans borrowing for a house or a car are helping to pay their government's interest bill, which has already exceeded the military budget. The United States this week passed $40 trillion in national debt, and interest alone now exceeds $1 trillion a year.

The Treasury Department's daily statement, published on Wednesday, put the total at $40.05 trillion as of Tuesday, 18 August. The previous trillion took five months to accumulate. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projected in 2023 that the $40 trillion mark would not arrive until the 2028 fiscal year.