U.S. debt tops 100% of GDP, ‘deeply troubling’ for economy, national security

The U.S. national debt is now larger than the entire American economy and is only set to keep growing, further exacerbating the affordability crisis and risking national security.

Out of the $39 trillion total national debt, debt held by the public hit $31.27 trillion on March 31, surpassing the $31.22 trillion in Gross Domestic Product over the past 12 months.

The fact that the national debt has reached 100% of GDP – the highest in history except for the years immediately following World War II – is “deeply troubling,” Romina Boccia, director of budget and entitlement policy at the Cato Institute, told The Center Square.

“Following World War II, we actually had a good reason for having such a high debt, and the government was on a path to reduce that debt after the war ended,” Boccia said. “In this case, we have debt as high as since World War II, except we are on a ...