Government Is Buying Back Its Own Bonds, But a $40 Trillion Debt Pile Looms

MarketWatch reported August 23, 2026 that U.S. Treasury efforts to steady the bond market aren't working. The national debt has reached $40 trillion, per Bloomberg on August 22. Starting September 9, Treasury will double its buyback operations to $4 billion each. But buying back bonds helps trading flow — it doesn't shrink the debt itself.