U.S. debt tops $39 trillion, sparking fiscal and Bitcoin‑Act debate

The U.S. Treasury has been borrowing about $155 billion each month in fiscal year 2026, pushing the national debt to roughly $39.4 trillion. A CBO review shows a deficit of just under $1.4 trillion in the first nine months, with net interest payments of $857 billion and weekly interest outlays of about $24 billion—exceeding the combined budgets of several federal departments.

Debt held by the public now exceeds $31 trillion, surpassing U.S. GDP for the first time since the post‑World War II era. The CBO projects the fiscal‑year‑2026 deficit at $1.9 trillion and warns that public debt could rise to $56 trillion by 2036.

Senator Cynthia Lummis has introduced the BITCOIN Act, proposing that the Treasury acquire up to one million bitcoins over five years as a long‑term hedge against fiscal pressures. No official Treasury purchases have been confirmed, but the proposal has intensified discussion of unconventional debt‑management strategies.