The US budget deficit grew to almost US$2 trillion over the past year, government data showed Friday, reaching its highest level since 2021 despite President Donald Trump's promises to cut public spending and red ink. The deficit, which occurs when government spending exceeds its revenues, rose to US$1.99 trillion in fiscal year 2026, the Treasury Department said. This marked a 12-percent increase from the prior year, when the shortfall came in at US$1.78 trillion. A key driver of expenditures was the rising interest paid on public debt, which jumped US$144 billion, to a record US$1.36 trillion. Interest costs on around US$32 trillion in publicly held US debt have been ballooning in recent years, and climbing bond yields have fuelled further concerns. Meanwhile, an expected influx of revenue from Trump's sweeping tariffs failed to fully materialise during his second term. The Supreme Court struck down his global duties in February, triggering a wave of refunds. Treasury data released Friday reflected US$145 billion in customs refunds over the year — primarily due to tariffs — erasing significant gains from Trump's duties. Overall, government revenues climbed by three percent to US$5.40 trillion in the latest fiscal year, which ended September 30. But spending was much higher, rising by six percent to US$7.40 trillion. The Trump administration has pledged to slash deficits and government spending since he returned to the White House last year. Besides slashing the federal workforce and foreign aid, the Republican-controlled Congress pushed through cuts to the Medicaid health insurance scheme and moved to shrink the federal food assistance programme too. But they also extended expiring tax cuts and provided fresh funding for Trump's migrant deportation drive. The latest data released Friday showed that upticks in tax collection from individuals and customs revenues were offset by higher refunds and lower corporate tax collection. Among other sectors, spending on on defence military programmes increased by US$48 billion, or six percent, over the year to US$917 billion. Taken together, a Treasury official estimates the US deficit-to-GDP ratio is around 6.2 percent, up from 5.8 percent last year. This stands in contrast to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's previously stated goal of bringing the deficit down to three percent of GDP, alongside other targets like spurring economic growth of three percent. The latest budget figures come around two weeks before US midterm elections, where Trump's Republican Party is trying to retain control of Congress. Ahead of the crucial vote, both Republicans and Democrats have raised ideas that could widen the budget shortfall further. Trump recently promised US$5,000 to every American adult if Republicans maintained control of Congress, a plan that would cost over US$1 trillion. Democrats say they are looking to reverse Medicaid cuts and revive health care tax breaks. (AFP) Edited by Tony Sabine

A teacher fought teenage shooter and a parent shot him dead, police say on Friday, a day after four people were killed.

White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia was pushed out on Friday after less than a week in the high-profile job, following a series of blunders that added to distractions for her embattled boss US President Donald Trump. "Can confirm," a White House official told AFP, after Fox News reported that Zacharia, 41, was "transitioning out." The writing was on the wall earlier when Trump made clear he was ready to see his newly minted spokeswoman go amid criticism that she had pretended to be a lawyer and over her one, much-mocked press briefing. "I said, 'Katie, is this for you?,'" Trump told reporters. "I said, 'Katie, you don't have to do this'... I said to her, 'Honestly if I were you I'd reconsider.'" Zacharia only began her job five days ago, taking over from the combative Karoline Leavitt, who helped Trump reshape White House coverage by bringing in more friendly outlets and fiercely attacking critical media. Zacharia had got off to a rocky start with her debut press room briefing Tuesday morning. It lasted less than 15 minutes, beginning with a remarkably slow reading out of what she said were Trump's many accomplishments — then taking just three questions from journalists. She then was plunged into controversy when it emerged that her previous claims to be a lawyer were not true. The kerfuffle is a distraction for 80-year-old Trump as he flies around the country trying to boost Republican candidates ahead of the November 3 congressional midterm elections, with polls predicting a drubbing. The Republican leader himself also faces ever-lower polls as Americans sour over the war against Iran, inflation and perceptions of corruption. Zacharia had described herself as a lawyer during television appearances and on social media, and listed herself as general counsel of a California-based conservative nonprofit. While she does have a law degree from a California university, she acknowledged Thursday she had failed the bar exam, a prerequisite for practicing law in the United States. She embarked on a series of damage-control interviews on Trump-friendly outlets, but they did no good. In one of them, Fox News' Sean Hannity, a close Trump ally, appeared dismissive of Zacharia. He asked the press secretary if she ever retook the bar exam. She replied: "I did not." "It was never my intent to go into the practice of law," she said. In another interview Thursday with pro-Trump outlet Real America's Voice, Zacharia said she had registered to take the bar exam but was "distracted and overwhelmed" by plans to move to China with her husband. Zacharia said "many people in the field" had assured her that she could "label myself a lawyer," given her law degree. "Fox and Friends," which often conducts friendly interviews with Trump administration officials, was unusually direct Friday when a host asked Zacharia if she still had the confidence of the president. "I hope to be able to build the trust and confidence of everyone around me," she said, sidestepping the question. (AFP) Edited by Tony Sabine