The U.S. federal government closed fiscal 2026 with a deficit of nearly $2 trillion, second only to the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021. Revenue rose 3% to more than $5.4 trillion, but spending climbed 6% to $7.4 trillion, with interest on the debt exceeding $1.1 trillion. The author argues that even if the $130 billion in tariffs ruled illegal had been kept, they would cover less than one-tenth of the gap. The author proposes reforms including indexing the retirement age to life expectancy, converting Medicare to premium support, and capping Medicaid spending per enrollee. The article concludes that Congress must act now, since the alternatives will prove far more painful.
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public debtbudget deficitUStariffs
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DXY
▼ Likely negativeRelevance: low
| Market | Currencies |
|---|---|
| Close on 10/16/2026 | 101.78 |
| Change that session | -0.20% |
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