It’s no secret that interest rates rose sharply in 2022. After sitting on its hands for more than a year, President Biden’s inflation forced the Federal Reserve into action. Its response was to hike interest rates; now, its interest rate hikes are biting into the economy.
The interest rates are also biting into the U.S. government’s budget. So much so the CBO projects interest payments on the national debt are on track to become the fastest-growing category of government spending.
But the CBO didn’t anticipate the Fed would be forced to raise rates as high and as fast as they have. The chart below from the
