From Fox Business: The U.S. national debt is on pace to break a record set after World War II in four years, while annual budget deficits are projected to balloon to $3 trillion a year a decade from now, according to a new analysis by Congress’ financial watchdog.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released a budget and economic outlook spanning the next decade, which projected that federal budget deficits will rise from an estimated $1.9 trillion in fiscal year 2026 to $3.1 trillion in 2036.
Mounting budget deficits will push the national debt higher, with the gross federal debt rising from an estimated $39.4 trillion at the end of fiscal year 2026 to $63 trillion in 2036. That will also increase the amount of debt held by the public from $32 trillion to $56 trillion in that period and with it the public as a share of gross domestic product (GDP), a measure economists prefer to use in comparing a nation’s debt to the size of its economy.
U.S. debt held by the public is estimated to rise to 108% of GDP in 2030, which would surpass the record of 106% set in 1946 as the U.S. was in the process of demobilization after the end of World War II. A decade from now, debt held by the public as a percentage of GDP is projected to reach 120%.
The CBO warned that higher inflation expectations could erode the dollar’s status as the dominant international reserve currency.
CLICK HERE to access the full report by the Congressional Budget Office.
PROJECTION: From 2026 to 2036, large and growing deficits cause debt to increase. Federal debt held by the public rises from 101 percent of GDP this year to 120 percent in 2036, surpassing its previous high of 106 percent of GDP in 1946.
Source: Congressional Budget Office… pic.twitter.com/BlEtuGt2mt— DMLNewsApp (@DMLNewsApp) February 13, 2026
The federal budget deficit totaled $696 billion in the first four months of fiscal year 2026, CBO estimates. That amount is $143 billion less than the deficit recorded during the same period last fiscal year.https://t.co/0WBCJoSfsP
— U.S. CBO (@USCBO) February 9, 2026
In CBO’s projections, the federal budget deficit in fiscal year 2026 is $1.9 trillion, and federal debt rises to 120 percent of GDP in 2036. Economic growth strengthens in 2026 and moderates in later years. https://t.co/tDmi44Le2F
— U.S. CBO (@USCBO) February 11, 2026
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