About The US National Debt

Our government has been spending more than it collects for many years.  This budget deficit has created the almost unimaginable national debt  which recently broke the $12 Tillion level.  But what is the Real U.S. National Debt and what is it made up of?  Here's an illustration that puts it into perspective showing the current debt of more than 12 trillion dollars plus the unfunded liabilities of Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and retirement benefits for civilian and military personnel.  This is the legacy we leave our children and grand children, a debt of 184 thousand dollars for every man, woman and child in America or 483 thousand dollars for every household in the United States.  And it is rising faster than we can pay it off.  The U. S. Government continues to spend more than it budgets year after year,  adding to our National Debt.

 

The Real National Debt in 2008 courtesy of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation. The illustration shows the unfunded liabilities of Medicare, Social Security and retirement benefits for civilian and military personnel. This is the legacy of debt equal to 184thousand dollars for every man, woman and child in America or 483 thousand dollars for every household in the United States.