The interest on their borrowing
Both parties built the debt. You pay $970 billion a year before the government buys anything new.
- Who acted
- Both parties built the debt: $7.8 trillion in Trump’s first term, $8.5 trillion under Biden, and $3.8 trillion in the first 19 months of Trump’s second.
- Who gained
- Treasury-security holders receive the interest. This entry does not claim every holder is a donor.
- What working people pay
- $970 billion in FY2025 — $30,758 every second. Divided by the number of U.S. households, that is about $7,300 each, though it is not an actual per-household bill.
- The connection
- Borrowing turns past tax and spending choices into a permanent first claim on future taxes.
Receipt: Treasury fiscal data and FY2025 interest reporting
In FY2025, the U.S. paid $970 billion in net interest on the national debt — more than it spent on defense ($917 billion) or Medicaid ($668 billion). That is $30,758 every second. Divided by the number of U.S. households, it is about $7,300 each — a scale comparison, not an actual household bill.
Both parties built the debt: $7.8 trillion in Trump's first term, $8.5 trillion under Biden, and $3.8 trillion in the first 19 months of Trump's second.
Interest buys no new road, school, or benefit. It pays Treasury-security holders for past borrowing and comes off the top of your taxes every year.
Both parties built the debt. Interest now costs $970 billion a year — $30,758 every second before your taxes buy anything new.
