US national debt keeps rising after years of tax cuts – and this will make policymaking all the more difficult

Democrats, set to take over Congress with robust majorities, will face at least one expensive obstacle to their policy agenda: a national debt that now equals the size of the U.S. economy. Clocking in at US$32 trillion, this debt-to-GDP ratio of 100% would likely raise alarms for other countries. But it attracted relatively little attention in an election season dominated by concerns over the economy and the cost of living . kAms63E 92D 8C@H? E@ E96D6 =6G6=D 3642FD6 @G6C E96 A2DE ad J62CD[ E96 7656C2= 8@G6C?>6?E 92D 366? k2 9C67lQ9EEADi^^HHH]2>6C:42?AC@8C6DD]@C8^2CE:4=6^E2I\4FED\2C6\AC:>2C:=J\C6DA@?D:3=6\7@C\E96\:?4C62D:?8\563E\C2E:@^QmDA6?5:?8 >@C6 E92? :E 4@==64ED :? E2I6Dk^2m] tG6? 2D E96 &]$] 64@?@>J 8C6H[ =2H>2<6CD 92G6 4FE E2I6D C6A62E65=J[ D@>6E:>6D H:E9 3:A2CE:D2? DFAA@CE[ :?DE625 @7 A2J:?8 5@H? 563E]k^Am kAm%96 D6C:6D @7 E2I 4FED D:?46 a__` 92D 25565 @G6C S`_ EC:==:@? 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