icon bookmark-bicon bookmarkicon cameraicon checkicon chevron downicon chevron lefticon chevron righticon chevron upicon closeicon v-compressicon downloadicon editicon v-expandicon fbicon fileicon filtericon flag ruicon full chevron downicon full chevron lefticon full chevron righticon full chevron upicon gpicon insicon mailicon moveicon-musicicon mutedicon nomutedicon okicon v-pauseicon v-playicon searchicon shareicon sign inicon sign upicon stepbackicon stepforicon swipe downicon tagicon tagsicon tgicon trashicon twicon vkicon yticon wticon fm
27 Nov, 2012 21:48

Treasury borrowed $24 billion in one day after Thanksgiving

Treasury borrowed $24 billion in one day after Thanksgiving

The US Treasury raised the national debt by more than $24 billion on the day after Thanksgiving, increasing it to the alarming rate of about $211.69 per US household and bringing it to the highest level in history.

Topping off at $16.3 trillion, Friday’s debt was the highest on US record. The numbers skyrocketed after the Treasury Department took the day off on Thanksgiving, holding off on borrowing for just one day. But while Americans stayed home to say thanks and celebrate their annual feast, the economy grew worse overnight, CNS News reported.“On Black Friday, while shoppers were still digesting their big Thanksgiving meals, the voracious federal government scarfed down second, third, and fourth helpings of debt,” wrote John Hayward of Human Events.When President Barack Obama first took office in 2009, the national debt was $10.6 trillion. Throughout the course of his presidency, it has increased by $5.7 trillion – the equivalent of nearly $50,000 per household.During a 60 Minutes interview two months ago, the president responded to the alarming numbers, claiming that most of the debt was out of his control.“Over the last four years, the deficit has gone up, but 90 percent of that is as a consequence of two wars that weren’t paid for, as a consequence of tax cuts that weren’t paid for, a prescription drug plan that was not paid for, and then the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression,” Obama said.But at a time when Congress is once again debating whether or not to raise the debt ceiling in a struggling economy, the numbers are concerning. If Congress does not raise the debt ceiling before the end of February, the US risks defaulting on its payments to creditors, the Bipartisan Policy Center said in a new report released Tuesday.The debt ceiling is currently set at $16.394 trillion and US national debt is currently at $16.268 trillion. Even though most politicians state the US can hardly afford to add to its already record-breaking debt numbers, very few economists doubt that in the years to come American credit will only grow.

Podcasts
0:00
23:13
0:00
25:0