US national debt climbs to $14 trillion

The US national debt is fast approaching the statutory debt limit of $14.294 trillion set by the Congress

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/158695.html


The US national debt has climbed to a record high of over $14 trillion amid concerns that the figure might surpass the debt ceiling set by the Congress.

The US Treasury reported on Tuesday that the national debt gained over $1 trillion since June, soaring to $14.02 trillion on December 31 from $13 trillion on June 1, as a fresh showdown between Democrats and Republicans looms large in deciding how the government should avert defaulting on its obligations, CBS News reported.

According to new statistics, the national debt stood at a whopping $14,025,215,218,708.52 - or $126,632 for every American taxpayer.

Meanwhile, concerns are running high that the increase could finally hit the statutory debt limit of $14.294 trillion set by the Congress and signed into law by US President Barak Obama in February last year.

Republicans, who have constantly campaigned on the platform of fiscal responsibility, have vowed to block an increase in the US debt ceiling, insisting that federal spending and unfunded government liabilities on entitlement programs should be slashed.

Last year, the US Congress voted to raise the debt ceiling to $14.3 trillion.

However, if the Congress does not vote to raise the debt limit this year, the likelihood of the governments' default on its financial obligations would significantly increase.

The impact on the state of the US economy would be "catastrophic" if the federal government defaulted on its financial obligations, said White House economic adviser Austan Goolsbee.

"That would be the first default in history caused purely by insanity," he emphasized.

The report comes as the worsening economic recession and vaulting debt crisis continue to wreak havoc in the US economy.