Updating debt clock

The .06 trillion increase works out to about 1 billion a year, or slightly less than the pace Obama had set.

That's an important measure because it gauges both the ability of the government to pay its tab through growth, and because it helps measure bang for the buck in terms of how much growth the debt has helped generate.

The future, though, is what has many economists concerned.

The most recent projections from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office indicate that debt held by the public will rise to 93 percent of GDP in the next 10 years, or the highest since just after the end of World War II.

From there, the level is expected to hit 150 percent by 2049, which is well above what economists consider a sustainable level.

Moreover, should current tax policies stay in place, rather than sunset as they are designed to do, the debt burden will get even worse.

These new reports compelled us to update our debt clock, and increase our estimate of the true national debt.