If the total U.S. public debt has exceeded approximately $37.4 trillion as of September 2025, according to data from the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the debt ceiling approved by Congress, and if annual interest payments have become one of the fastest-growing categories of federal spending—approaching or even surpassing $1 trillion per year due to rising interest rates—
then how will the current administration manage debt servicing? Especially considering that the United States’ gross domestic product is close to $29 trillion, which means that public debt is roughly equal to, or may even exceed, the size of the entire economy.
Moreover, the U.S. Department of Defense budget represents about 2.2% of the total public debt for 2025, amounting to roughly $850 billion. The available figures are striking and concerning for any American policymaker. Yet the pressing question is: do these realities receive priority under an administration often accused of focusing more on external affairs than domestic challenges—an administration perceived as more concerned with war than with addressing its complex internal problems?
The central issue raised by this discussion is that the debt ceiling continues to rise annually, and interest payments are steadily increasing. From an economic perspective, how can financial—and even civilizational—sustainability be ensured under such a trajectory? How can a country that considers itself the world’s leading power, and seeks to consolidate its global influence, maintain its position while its public finances rest on an expanding debt burden? And does this model truly represent a path worthy of emulation worldwide ?
