Congress finally reopened the government after Democrats tried to stonewall. But no one is talking about what that actually meant for Americans.
And now an unforeseen government shutdown consequence left everyone scratching their heads.
Spending Spree Starts FY2026: Shutdown? What Shutdown?
The longest government shutdown in U.S. history may have furloughed hundreds of thousands of federal workers and made headlines for weeks, but it barely put a dent in Washington’s addiction to spending your money.
As soon as the doors reopened on November 12, the federal spigot roared back to full blast.
October Outlays Shatter Records – Again
Fresh Treasury data dropped Tuesday reveal the government burned through a jaw-dropping $689 billion in October alone – more than $100 billion above October 2024 levels and the highest October spending figure ever recorded.
Treasury officials are quick to blame “timing shifts” because November 1 fell on a weekend, accelerating roughly $105 billion in payments (Social Security, Medicare, veterans’ benefits, military pay, etc.) into October.
Strip out that calendar quirk, and spending was merely flat year-over-year instead of explosive. Comforting, right?
Even after the adjustment, interest on the national debt hit a new monthly high of $91 billion – up a brutal 27% from last October. That’s $1,092 billion a year just to service what we already owe, and it’s only going one direction.
Deficit Off to a Flying (Red) Start
Revenue did climb nearly $80 billion to $404 billion, fueled in part by a record $31 billion in customs duties – thank President Trump’s tariffs for that rare bright spot.
But spending grew faster, leaving taxpayers on the hook for a $284 billion October deficit (or roughly $180 billion after the timing adjustment).
Either way, fiscal year 2026 is off to its traditional roaring red start, just weeks after FY2025 closed with a $1.8 trillion deficit.
Health and Human Services payouts leaped from $152 billion to $228 billion. Social Security jumped from $130 billion to $145 billion – courtesy of inflation adjustments, more retirees, and new rules letting some public-sector workers double-dip pensions and benefits.
Meanwhile, the shutdown did produce a few pockets of restraint: Agriculture spending fell $7 billion, and smaller drops showed up at Defense, Commerce, Interior, Justice, State, and NASA. Apparently those agencies can survive on less when they have no choice.
Bottom line: a historic shutdown inconvenienced federal workers and snarled national parks, but the entitlement and debt-interest juggernaut rolled on virtually untouched – and the new fiscal year is already proving that Washington’s spending problem is alive, well, and accelerating.
