Interest costs on US national debt set to exceed defense spending this year

foxbusiness.com:

Economist Peter Morici breaks down what the national debt is, why it ballooned to more than $34 trillion and what it means for Americans.

The rapid increase in interest rates over the past year could cause some collateral damage to the U.S. government's finances. 

That is because as interest rates rise, the federal government's borrowing costs on its $34.24 trillion in debt will also increase.

Interest payments on the national debt are the fastest-growing part of the federal budget – and are poised to leapfrog both Medicare and defense spending in 2024, according to new projections published by the Congressional Budget Office.

Payments are expected to triple from nearly $475 billion in fiscal year 2022 to a stunning $1.4 trillion in 2032. By 2053, the interest payments are projected to surge to $5.4 trillion.

«For years, those of us weary of growing government debt argued that it could become extremely expensive if interest rates were to rise. This was particularly worrisome, considering the short-term maturity of our debt,» said Veronique de Rugy, a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. «Now the time has come, and it seems to be having no impact on the behavior of those in Congress.»

LARGE DEFICITS, HIGH INTEREST RATES MAKING FEDERAL DEBT LESS SUSTAINABLE

Interest payments on the national debt are the fastest-growing part of the federal budget – and are poised to leapfrog both Medicare and defense spending in 2024. (Photographer: Julia Nikhinson/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

As a share of the economy, total interest on the national debt is projected this year to hit a record 3.1% of GDP, which is the broadest measure of goods and services produced in the country. That