The debt in the United States is extremely high and is only continuing to grow. There's not one person to blame for this, as the responsibility lies on the shoulders of many different presidents. Five in particular raised the debt ceiling incredibly high, and the list starts with Ronald Reagan.

 

He raised the ceiling from $935.1 billion to $2.8 trillion from years 1981 to 1987. The next president to increase the debt was George H.W. Bush, who took the country's debt from $2.8 trillion to $4.134 trillion. He did these increases from August 1989 to November 1990. Next up is Bill Clinton, who raised the debt ceiling from $4.145 trillion to $5.95 trillion. These raises occurred from April 1993 to August 1997. President George W. Bush was the next to create an increase, and he moved the debt from $5.95 trillion to $11.315 trillion. These raises occurred from 2001 until 2009 and took place on seven separate occasions.

Last, but certainly not least, current President Barack Obama has raised the debt ceiling from $11.315 trillion to $14.294 trillion. Since his term is not yet over, the debt ceiling will likely be increased in the future; the last increase took place in February 2010.