The United States national debt has surpassed $40 trillion.
Said by Rep. Eric Burlison, Checked Updated
- Sources
- 6 support
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 95%
The MeidasTouch PodcastSep 15, 2026
The claim that the US national debt surpassed $40 trillion is supported by multiple sources: the Treasury reported total public debt of $40.047 trillion on August 18, 2026 (Washington Post, Reuters, CNN), and by 2026-09-15 the debt was above $40 trillion (about $40.1 trillion at 9/15 per coverage of the September figures).
This claim is about the present, so it is judged as of the day it was checked.
What was said
… Let's behave like grownups, please. I think also, if this was working and, you know, you'd be like, "Whoa, we did bring in 20 trillion dollars," except we didn't. Our debt has increased to over 40 trillion dollars. Our deficit has hit record highs. We didn't bring in the money. It's just more lies. If it actually brought down the Treasury yields and people could all of a sudden afford homes, I'd be like, "I'd be dead. Some crazy shit. It would have worked." …
The MeidasTouch Podcast · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. The Washington Post reports the Treasury said total public debt outstanding stood at $40,047,426,000,000 as of Aug 18, 2026, the first time it surpassed $40 trillion.[2]
Supports. Reuters (Sept 2, 2026) reports the national debt surged past $40 trillion in the first 19 months of Trump's second term.[1]
Supports. The Hill reports the total national debt was more than $40.5 trillion as of late October and that it crossed $40 trillion in August 2026.[3]
Supports. Treasury Debt to the Penny data cited by govfacts and 500metrics show total public debt at about $40.17 trillion at end of September 2026, consistent with the debt being above $40 trillion on the posted date.[4][5][6]
Context. The claim's 'over 40 trillion' is the post's own wording; the post's other sentences do not add a different figure or scope, so the extraction is faithful.
Sources
6 sources: 1 fact-checker, 1 tier 2, 1 tier 1, 3 not rated
- 1Trump pledged fiscal restraint. Instead, debt tops $40 ...reuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2U.S. debt hits $40 trillion faster than forecasters expectedwashingtonpost.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 3Federal debt surpassed GDP for fiscal 2026thehill.com · tier 1 · cited for: supports
- 4Sizing Up the $40 Trillion National Debtindependent.org · not rated · cited for: supports
- 5US National Debt Today: Total Public Debt and Parts | 500metrics500metrics.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 6How Much Is the National Debt? See Treasury’s Totalgovfacts.org · not rated · cited for: supports
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Checked 3 times
Each check reads the sources again. The newest verdict is the one this page states.
- · latestTrue
- True
- True