US Interest Payments Surpass Defense Spending in Early Fiscal Year
The national debt currently stands at $38.5 trillion, with high interest rates driving up borrowing costs. President Donald Trump has pressured the Federal Reserve to lower rates, saying Fed Chair Jerome Powell “cost the USA a fortune and continue to do so” due to elevated interest expenses.
According to U.S. Treasury Department data, total federal spending from October 1, 2025, to December 31, 2025, amounted to $1.8 trillion. Social Security accounted for the largest share at $402.1 billion, followed by net interest payments at $270.3 billion, representing 14.8% of total spending. Defense spending totaled $266.9 billion, slightly below the interest payments. Other major expenditures included healthcare ($261.3 billion), Medicare ($254.1 billion), income security ($165.6 billion), veterans’ benefits ($114.1 billion), education ($39 billion), transportation ($33.3 billion), and roughly $21 billion for other items.
Interest spending has surged sharply in recent years. In fiscal 2025, it was 2.5 times higher than pre-pandemic levels. For comparison, the government spent $375.6 billion on interest in fiscal 2019, $344.7 billion in 2020, $352.3 billion in 2021, $475.1 billion in 2022, $659.2 billion in 2023, $881.7 billion in 2024, and $970.4 billion in 2025.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the
information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept
any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images,
videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information
contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright
issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
