US DEPT REACHES $17 TRILLION AFTER CEILING LIFTED

Washington DC, 14 Dul Hijja 1434/19 October 2013 (MINA) –The US Treasury Department has announced that the public debt of the United States reached to a record of $17.076 trillion for the first time in the county’s history.

     The national debt jumped $329 billion from $16.747 trillion after the Congress decided to raise the country’s debt ceiling, the department said on Friday.
         The unprecedented figure came after Wednesday’s agreement suspended the debt ceiling until Feb. 7 and ended the impasse over the debt ceiling and a temporary shutdown of the federal government.
         Under the current deal, the US government is able to borrow as much money as it needs to cover obligations now.

         It can also use months of extraordinary measures once again to keep the government running if Congress again were to refuse to raise the debt ceiling, The Hill reported.
          The country’s debt stood at $10.627 trillion on the day President Barack Obama took office. Under the Obama’s administration, $6.5 trillion has been added to the nation’s credit card, Press TV reported as monitored by Mi’raj News Agency (MINA).
          On Friday, Republicans lashed out at the new debt figures. “For the first time in our nation’s history, our national debt has topped $17 trillion. This is unacceptable,” Republican Senator Ted Cruz tweeted.
          Meanwhile, a new poll by Pew Research Center showed that an overwhelming majority of Americans are not satisfied with Congress and the government’s performance.
         According to the survey, only 19 percent of respondents said they trust the federal government and only 23 percent of Americans had a favorable view of Congress.
         The American people blame lawmakers rather than the political system more generally for the problems in Congress.
         About 58 percent said “the political system can work fine, it’s the members of Congress that are the problem” and just 32 percent said “most members of Congress have good intentions, it’s the political system that is broken.”

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The United States public debt is the amount owed by the federal government of the United States. The measure of the public debt is the value of the Treasury securities that have been issued by the Treasury and other federal government agencies[which?] and which are outstanding at that point of time. Gross public debt consists of two components.

Debt held by the public, such as Treasury securities held by investors outside the federal government, including that held by individuals, corporations, the Federal Reserve System and foreign, state and local governments.

Debt held by government accounts or intra-governmental debt, such as non-marketable Treasury securities held in accounts administered by the federal government that are owed to program beneficiaries, such as the Social Security Trust Fund. Debt held by government accounts represents the cumulative surpluses, including interest earnings, of these accounts that have been invested in Treasury securities.

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In general, public debt increases as a result of government spending and decreases as a result of government tax or other receipts, though in practice Treasury securities are not issued or redeemed on a day-by-day basis. The amount that Treasury can borrow is limited by the United States debt ceiling. (T/P04/E1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)