National debt surpasses $23 trillion mark, adds $4.1 billion more in one week

The national debt has surpassed $23 trillion for the second time, adding $4.1 billion in one week. It broke the $23 trillion mark on Nov. 1 for the time in history, barely nine months after the debt broke records surpassing $22 trillion on Feb. 11. The debt has grown some 16 percent since President Donald Trump’s inauguration, when it stood at $19.9 trillion.

Of the $23 trillion, $16.98 trillion is debt held by the public and $6 trillion to intergovernmental holdings.

Despite record highs in the stock market, a booming economy, record jobs and employment reports, and the longest economic expansion since the post–World War II era, “Washington shows no fear,” Michael A. Peterson, CEO of the fiscally conservative Peter G. Peterson Foundation (PGPF) said in a statement. “Piling on debt like this is especially unwise and unnecessary in a strong economy.”