scorecardAs a result of those deficits, the total federal debt has increased over the last three presidents and is now over $22 trillion.
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  4. Trump boasts the economy is the best it's ever been. Here are 9 charts showing how it's fared compared to the Obama and Bush presidencies.
  5. As a result of those deficits, the total federal debt has increased over the last three presidents and is now over $22 trillion.

As a result of those deficits, the total federal debt has increased over the last three presidents and is now over $22 trillion.

The federal debt is the amount of money the federal government owes. And its been on the upswing since the start of the 21st century.

The debt increased steadily under Bush, the result of a costly war on terror and the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. According to the Costs of War Project at Brown University, the price tag of the post-9/11 wars totaled $5.9 trillion through fiscal year 2019. The tax cuts he passed also played a role in piling more onto the debt — and it was nearly $10 trillion by the time he left office, double what it was at the start of his presidency.

Obama's stimulus packages also added a substantial amount of money to the debt, though it helped put the nation back on track economically. According to Department of Treasury data and Congressional Budget Office projections, the national debt grew 84% under Obama's watch by the end of fiscal year of 2016 — slightly more than it had under Bush at 75%.

Trump vowed to erase the debt during his presidency, but he's done no such thing and instead has only added to it.

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