Fed's Barkin Warns Rising US Debt Will Bring Eventual Reckoning

07:39 PM EDT, 08/25/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Tom Barkin said rising US debt will eventually bring a "reckoning," though it is difficult to know when, Bloomberg reported Tuesday. Barkin said the government can continue borrowing as long as investors keep buying its debt, but warned that investors could eventually push back, according to the report. Barkin also said the Fed's July decision to hold interest rates steady was a "close call." He said officials would have two more months of economic data before the Sept. 15-16 policy meeting, Bloomberg reported.