US federal interest payments surpassed defense spending in the most recent fiscal year. ^[1] The yield on the 30-year US Treasury bond reached a peak of 5.34% on 2026-08-18, a level not seen in 19 years. ^[2] Increasing interest costs are crowding out federal spending on education, transportation, housing, security, foreign aid, and other public programs. ^[3] The rise in US federal interest payments is driven by higher borrowing rates, as the government refinances maturing debt at higher interest rates than in the 2010s when rates were near zero. ^[4] US federal interest payments are projected to exceed Medicare spending by 2029, all discretionary budget spending by 2038, and to become the largest federal spending item by 2048 if current trends continue. ^[5] The 30-year yield rose again to 5.31% in the last two weeks, the highest since 2007, while the 10-year yield reached 4.78%. ^[6] The US national debt exceeds US$40 trillion. ^[7] The US Treasury doubled its long-term bond buybacks to at least US$4 billion per operation. ^[8]