US national debt tops record $34 trillion

The US Treasury announced Tuesday that the federal government’s gross national debt has surpassed $34 trillion, a record high.

The national debt jumped by $2.6 trillion in the six months through December.

On Oct. 30, the Senate passed a last-minute spending bill to fund the federal government through Nov. 17, narrowly avoiding a shutdown.

On Nov. 17, President Joe Biden signed a stopgap spending bill to avert a government shutdown and to push a fight with congressional Republicans over the federal budget into the new year.

In a two-step plan, the bill extends funding for the Departments of Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, Energy and Veterans Affairs until Jan. 19. The remaining agencies would be funded until Feb. 2.

The spending bill, which managed to pass in the House of Representatives only after Republicans sought Democratic support, does not include additional aid for Israel or Ukraine.