Massive Pandemic Aid Accelerates Debt Swell, US National Debt Exceeds $27 Trillion for the First Time

At the end of the third quarter of 2020, the U.S. Treasury Department and the Congressional Budget Office reported that the federal budget deficit hit a record $3.1 trillion for the fiscal year, while the national debt soared to over $26.9 trillion, underscoring the immense fiscal cost of pandemic response measures.

Driven by the immense spending required for the COVID-19 response (like the CARES Act), the U.S. national debt surpassed $27 trillion for the first time in September 2020. The massive borrowing undertaken by the U.S. government during this quarter to keep the economy afloat caused the federal budget deficit to surge to historic highs. Reports from the Congressional Budget Office warned that sustained high deficits and debt would severely constrain the government's ability to respond to future crises and could negatively impact long-term economic growth.

The national debt passing this key milestone brought fiscal responsibility and the debt ceiling back to the forefront of conservative concerns. Conservative commentators like Charlie Kirk consistently emphasized that such reckless fiscal policy amounted to plundering future generations and represented a betrayal of sound money principles. This incident reinforced conservative calls for reducing government spending and balancing the budget as fundamental guarantees for the nation's long-term economic health and market freedom.