US debt hits $40 trillion: Who does Washington owe and why does it matter?

The total debt of the United States has surpassed $40 trillion for the first time in history, according to a Department of the Treasury update on Wednesday.Ballooning debt, especially during President Donald Trump’s second term, which began in January last year, has been raising concerns about a looming fiscal crisis for some time, with economists fearing a toxic combination of heavy borrowing, increased spending and lower taxes could land the world’s biggest economy in crisis.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4CEO pay skyrockets in 2025 amid growing income inequality in the USlist 2 of 4Inside the UK’s ‘stressful’ cost of living crisis Burnham hopes to tacklelist 3 of 4UAE trade embargo could shut Iran’s key economic escape route: Here’s whylist 4 of 4US national debt passes record $40 trillionend of listFast-rising US debt comes despite Trump’s championing of cost-cutting and efficiency as a hallmark of his second term, with the nongovernmental Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) slashing between 250,000 and 350,000 federal jobs and cutting global aid since the start of last year.In May 2023, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) predicted that the US would reac...