Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf criticized the U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday over rising U.S. borrowing costs and elevated national debt amid his actions on military spending in the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. Debt-Fueled Military Spending
In a post on X, Ghalibaf said “So you’re funding Hegseth the failed TV host at rates unheard of since 2007, so he can cosplay as Secretary of War in our backyard in Hormuz?”
He warned that a higher level of debt could result in a new financial crisis, saying, “You know what’s crazier than $39 trillion in debt? Paying a pre-GFC premium to fund a LARP and all you’ll get is a brand new GFC.”
Ghalibaf referred Hegseth here as playing a live role in movies rather than being realistic.
Elevated National Debt
The U.S. is sitting on a record $39 trillion national debt, which is now larger than the entire economy. The debt reached 100.2% of gross domestic product at the end of March, a level not seen since the aftermath of World War II.
Treasuries Auction at Higher Rates
The U.S. sold $35 billion in 30-year bonds at an elevated 5% rate for the first time since 2007 in an auction on Wednesday.
Washington is now spending roughly $1.22 trillion a year servicing its debt, the equivalent of over 4% of GDP and a level the United States has not paid out in interest since the early 1990s.
The auction comes after the hot Producer Price Index (PPI) data, which shows U.S. producer prices jumped the most since 2022 last month.
The Strait of Hormuz energy shock continued to feed through the inflation pipeline, adding fresh concerns over the Federal Reserve’s rate outlook. President Donald Trump calledthe Iranian ceasefire “on life support” on May 11.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by a Benzinga editor.
Photo Courtesy: Philip Yabut on Shutterstock.com
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