The current outstanding US debt is over $19.8 Trillion or 19,844,586,961,607.12 to be exact as of September 7, 2017 according to US Treasury. The national debt rises during periods of crises such as World War II. Among the major developed countries US is in a unique situation where government expenditures exceed revenues. Since expenditures for entitlement programs such as Social Security, Disability, Medicaid, Medicare and thousands of other programs where the state mails out checks every day are expected to increase in the coming years, US federal debt is projected to reach record levels. Interest payments on outstanding debt also adds to the growing debt mountain.
The graph below shows the historical US federal debt as percentage of GDP since the country’s founding in the 18th century:
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Source: Gold and Bitcoin Surge on North Korea Fears by Frank Holmes, US Funds
