The U.S. national debt surpassed $23 trillion on Friday, per the Treasury Department and the Peterson Foundation.
Why it matters: The national debt met the $22 trillion mark just nine months ago and has soared $3 trillion since Trump took office, when it rested at $19.95 trillion. The White House projected in July that the federal deficit would surpass $1 trillion this year — the first time since the four-year period following the Great Recession.
