Adding to national debt is an inevitable fact of being President of the United States. The extent to which debt rises under any sitting president depends not only on the policy and spending choices they have made, but also the choices made by presidents and congresses that have come before them. Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush President Ronald Reagan increased the U.S. debt by around **** trillion U.S. dollars, or ****** percent. This is often attributed to "Reaganomics," in which Reagan implemented significant supply-side economic policies in which he reduced government regulation, cut taxes, and tightened the money supply. Spending increased under President George W. Bush in light of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. To finance the wars, President Bush chose to borrow the money, rather than use war bonds or increase taxes, unlike previous war-time presidents. Additionally, Bush introduced a number of tax cuts, and oversaw the beginning of the 2008 financial crisis. Barack Obama President Obama inherited both wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the financial crisis. The Obama administration also did not increase taxes to pay for the wars, and additionally passed expensive legislation to kickstart the economy following the economic crash, as well as the Affordable Care Act in 2010. The ACA expanded healthcare coverage to cover more than ** million more Americans through programs like Medicare and Medicaid. Though controversial at the time, more than half of Americans have a favorable view of the ACA in 2023. Additionally, he signed legislation making the W. Bush-era tax cuts permanent.

In 2023, the U.S. government had a budget deficit of 1.69 trillion U.S. dollars. This is compared to 2000, when the government had a budget surplus of 0.24 trillion U.S. dollars.

U.S. Government budget

The government budget is a financial statement that demonstrates the government’s suggested revenues and spending for the financial year. Budget surpluses occur when income exceeds expenditures. Budget deficits occur when spending exceeds income. The budget balance of the U.S. government has fluctuated since 2016, and is expected to decrease slightly by 2026.

Military spending

Defense outlays in the United States amounted to 714 billion U.S. dollars in 2020. It is expected to continue to increase over the next several years. The United States currently has the largest defense budget in the world, and is the largest employer in the world. The military budget funds the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force. The amount of funding that goes towards the Department of Defense is heavily criticized by Democrats in the United States, because they believe that the funding should be more evenly distributed towards other social welfare programs such as public health insurance and education.

Graph and download economic data for Federal Surplus or Deficit - from 1901 to 2025 about budget, federal, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for Federal Surplus or Deficit [-] as Percent of Gross Domestic Product (FYFSGDA188S) from 1929 to 2024 about budget, federal, GDP, and USA.

In September 2024, the national debt of the United States had risen up to 35.46 trillion U.S. dollars. The national debt per capita had risen to 85,552 U.S. dollars in 2021. As represented by the statistic above, the public debt of the United States has been continuously rising. U.S. public debt Public debt, also known as national and governmental debt, is the debt owed by a nations’ central government. In the case of the U.S., national debt is owed by the federal government to Treasury security holders. Generally speaking, government debt increases with government spending, and can be decreased through taxes. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. government increased spending significantly to finance virus infrastructure, aid, and various forms of economic relief. International public debt Venezuela leads the global ranking of the 20 countries with the highest public debt in 2021. In relation to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Venezuela's public debt amounted to around 306.95 percent of GDP. Eritrea was ranked fifth, with an estimated debt of 170 percent of the Gross Domestic Product. The national debt of the United Kingdom is forecasted to grow from 87 percent in 2022 to 70 percent in 2027, in relation to the Gross Domestic Product. These figures include England, Wales, Scotland as well as Northern Ireland. Greece had the highest national debt among EU countries as of the 4th quarter of 2020 in relation to the Gross Domestic Product. Germany ranked 13th in the EU, with its national debt amounting to 69 percent of GDP in the same time period. Tuvalu was one of the 20 countries with the lowest national debt in 2021 in relation to the GDP, while Macao had an estimated level of national debt of zero percent, the lowest of any country. The data refer to the debts of the entire state, including the central government, the provinces, municipalities, local authorities and social insurance.

By 2035, the gross federal debt of the United States is projected to be about 59.3 trillion U.S. dollars. This would be an increase of around 24 trillion U.S. dollars from 2024, when the federal debt was around 35 trillion U.S. dollars. The federal debt of the U.S. The federal debt, also called the national debt or public debt, is the amount of debt held by the United States government. This debt may be to other countries, or to different departments within the government itself. The public debt of the United States has increased significantly over the past 30 years, as it was around 3.2 trillion U.S. dollars in 1990 and surpassed 30 trillion dollars for the first time in 2022. When broken down per capita, the national debt amounted to about 80,885 U.S. dollars of debt per person in the United States in 2021. The problem of the federal debt Over the past decade, the federal debt limit in the United States has increased significantly. The U.S. debt ceiling can only be changed by an act of Congress which is then signed by the president. The raising of the ceiling has become a recurring political issue in recent years, especially during times when the Presidency and chambers of Congress are controlled by different parties. The debt ceiling is a tool that allows the Treasury to issue bonds without congressional approval, allowing for efficiency in the way that the government pays for programs and services. It is thought to be further valuable in that it keeps federal finances in check. However, when the two parties are unable to come to an agreement on raising the debt ceiling, the government comes to a shutdown because they can no longer fund themselves. The Republican Party in particular often positions itself against raising the federal debt ceiling, characterizing themselves as the party of fiscal conservativism. However, analyses have shown that both parties have contributed to the country's debt in almost equal measures.

Summarizes the U.S. government's total outstanding debt at the end of each fiscal year from 1789 to the current year.

The United States recorded a Government Debt to GDP of 124.30 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2024. This dataset provides - United States Government Debt To GDP - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Graph and download economic data for Federal Debt: Total Public Debt (GFDEBTN) from Q1 1966 to Q2 2025 about public, debt, federal, government, and USA.

In August 2025, the public debt of the United States was around 37.27 trillion U.S. dollars, a slight decrease from the previous month. The U.S. public debt ceiling has become one of the most prominent political issues in the States in recent years, with debate over how to handle it causing political turmoil between Democrats and Republicans. The public debt The public debt of the United States has risen quickly since 2000, and in 2022 was more than five times higher than in 2000. The public debt is the total outstanding debt that is owed by the federal government. This figure comprises debt owed to the public (for example, through bonds) and intergovernmental debt (debt owed to various governmental departments), such as Social Security. Debt in Politics The debt issue has become a highly contentious topic within the U.S. government. Measures such as stimulus packages, social programs and tax cuts add to the public debt. Additionally, spending tends to peak during large global events, such as the Great Depression, the 2008 financial crisis, or the COVID-19 pandemic - all of which had a detrimental impact on the U.S. economy. Although both major political parties in the U.S. tend to blame one another for increases in the country's debt, a recent analysis found that both parties have contributed almost equally to national expenditure. Debate on raising the debt ceiling, or the amount of debt the federal government is allowed to have at any one time, was a leading topic in the government shutdown in October 2013. Despite plans from both Democrats and Republicans on how to lower the national debt, it is only expected to increase over the next decade.

This poll, the first of two fielded in January of 2013, is part of a continuing series of monthly surveys that solicits public opinion on a range of political and social issues. Respondents were asked whether they approved of the way Barack Obama was handling foreign policy, the economy, the federal budget deficit, taxes, and his job as president. Respondents were also asked whether they approved of the way Democrats in Congress, and Republicans in Congress were handling their jobs. Respondents' opinions were solicited on whether things were going better than they were five years prior, their predictions about how the United States would be five years in the future, whether they thought things in the country were going in the right direction, the condition of the national economy, and whether the economy was getting better. Opinions were also solicited on Michelle Obama, Joe Biden, John Boehner, Harry Reid, the National Riffle Association, and gun control laws. Respondents were asked how confident they were in Barack Obama's ability to make the right decisions about the economy, Afghanistan, protecting the country, and illegal immigration. Questions were asked about Obama's second term in office including whether respondents were optimistic about the next four years with Barack Obama as president, what they wanted to see Obama accomplish in the next four years, and whether they expected the economy and the health care system to improve by the end of Obama's second term as president. Opinions on the federal budget deficit were collected including the best way to reduce it, which programs respondents would be willing to change in order to cut spending, and who respondents trusted more to make the right decisions about the deficit. Multiple questions addressed the topic of firearms including bans on semi-automatic weapons, high capacity magazines, and people other than law enforcement carrying concealed weapons. Additionally questions were asked regarding background checks on potential gun buyers, the creation of a national database to track gun sales, and gun violence prevention. Additional topics covered include personal finance, job security, and consumer attitudes. Demographic variables include sex, age, race, education level, household income, social class, employment status, religious preference and participation, type of residential area (e.g., urban or rural), whether respondents thought of themselves as born-again Christians, marital status, household composition, political party affiliation, political philosophy, voter registration status, voting behavior, and the number of phones in respondents' household.

The United States federal government budget has allotted around ** billion dollars toward its 2025 civilian federal agency information technology budget. As leadership and government priorities change, the IT budgets allocated to different departments tend to follow suit. The Department of Energy's IT budget increased significantly by ** percent compared to the previous year, with *** billion U.S. dollars allocated in FY 2025. Similarly, the IT budget of the Department of Homeland security also increased by ** percent compared to the previous year, to around ** billion U.S. dollars for FY 2025. Meanwhile, the Office of Personnel Management saw its IT budget shrink the most among the civilian federal government agencies, decreasing by a staggering ** percent compared to FY 2024. Since the 2022 federal budget, figures do not include the portion of the budget allocated to the Department of Defense or other classified IT spending. U.S. government budget In the United States, huge shares of government expenditures go towards the Department of Health and Human Services as well as the Social Security Administration. Due in part to the country’s continually increasing budget, the government has run at an annual deficit since 2002, with its 2024 deficit estimated to over be around *** trillion dollars. Cybersecurity budget One of the main facets of the U.S. government IT budget is spending related to cybersecurity. Over ** billion U.S. dollars have been allocated towards cybersecurity in 2024. The Departments of Homeland Security and Justice have unsurprisingly had the highest cybersecurity budgets across all departments, given the sensitive nature of their work.

This poll, fielded April 5-12, 2010, is a part of a continuing series of monthly surveys that solicits public opinion on the presidency and on a range of other political and social issues. Respondents were asked whether they approved of the way that Barack Obama was handling his job as president, the economy, health care, and the federal budget deficit, what they liked best and least about Obama, whether they thought things in the country were going in the right direction, and what they thought was the most important problem facing the country. Information was collected on whether respondents approved or disapproved of the way Congress was handling its job, whether they approved or disapproved of the way their representative in Congress was handling their job, whether they had a favorable or unfavorable opinion of President Obama, how respondents would rate the national economy, and who they thought was mostly to blame for the state of the national economy. Respondents were queried on whether they thought that the government's stimulus package made the economy better or worse, whether they thought that the country needed a third political party, whether they would rather have a smaller government with fewer services or a bigger government providing more services, how they felt things were going in Washington, DC, whether they thought the federal government should spend money to create jobs even if it means increasing the budget deficit, and whether they would rather reduce the federal budget deficit or cut taxes. Respondents were also asked who they thought was to blame for the current federal budget deficit, whether they thought providing government money to banks and other financial institutions was necessary to get the economy out of a recession, whether they had a favorable or unfavorable opinion of the Republican Party, the Democratic Party, John McCain, George Bush, Ron Paul, Glen Beck, and Sarah Palin. Information was collected on what political figure the respondents admired most, whether they thought Sarah Palin would have the ability to be an effective president, whether they thought President Obama understands the need and problems of people like themselves, whether respondents thought he was more of a liberal, a moderate, or a conservative, whether they thought his policies were moving the country more towards socialism, whether they thought he favored a particular race over another, and whether they thought the Obama Administration had raised or lowered taxes for most Americans. Respondents were asked whether they thought that the federal government should require nearly all Americans to have health insurance, whether they thought it would be a good idea to raise income taxes on households that make more than $250,000 a year in order to help provide health insurance for people who do not already have it, whether they approved or disapproved of requiring health insurance companies to cover anyone who applies regardless of whether they have an existing medical condition, and whether they thought that the programs such as Social Security and Medicare are worth the cost of those programs for taxpayers. Respondents were queried on whether they thought legal immigration into the United States should be kept at its presents level, increased, or decreased, how serious a problem they thought illegal immigration was, whether they thought that global warming was causing a serious environmental problem, whether they thought gay couples should be allowed to marry, whether they thought abortion should be legal, whether they thought gun control law should be made more strict, what socialism means to them, and whether they thought it was ever justified for citizens to take violent action against the government. Respondents were also asked a number of questions about the Tea Party movement, including how much have they heard about it, whether they had a favorable opinion of it, whether they supported it, and whether they thought the Tea Party movement generally reflected the views of most Americans. Finally, respondents were asked if they were ever active in a political campaign, whether they purchased gold bars or coins in the past year, what political party they usually vote for, what news network they watched most, how concerned were they that they or someone in their household would lose their job in the next year, whe

This poll, fielded March 18-21, 2011, is a part of a continuing series of monthly surveys that solicits public opinion on a range of political and social issues. Respondents were asked whether they approved of the way Barack Obama was handling his job as president, the economy, foreign policy, and the federal budget deficit, whether they thought the country was headed in the right direction, and whether they approved of the way Congress was handling its job. Respondents were queried on the condition of the national economy, who they thought was mostly to blame for the current state of the nation's economy, and how serious a problem they thought the federal budget deficit was for the country. Opinions were gathered on Social Security, Medicare, nuclear power, gasoline prices, the Islam religion, and terrorism. Respondents were also asked how likely they thought it was that a major earthquake will happen in the United States in the next 20 years, whether they thought the federal government was prepared to deal with a major earthquake, how closely they have been following the uprising in Libya, whether they consider themselves to be a supporter of the Tea Party movement, whether they voted in the House of Representatives elections in 2010, whom they voted for in the 2008 presidential election, and how they would rate their current financial situation. Additional topics included same-sex marriage, the war in Afghanistan, the earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear crisis in Japan, and the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Demographic information includes sex, age, race, marital status, education level, household income, employment status, religious preference, type of residential area (e.g., urban or rural), political party affiliation, political philosophy, voter registration status, and whether respondents thought of themselves as born-again Christians.

Key information about Mexico National Government Debt

• Mexico National Government Debt reached 1,052.3 USD bn in Oct 2025, compared with 1,069.1 USD bn in the previous month.
• Mexico National Government Debt data is updated monthly, available from Dec 2005 to Oct 2025.
• The data reached an all-time high of 1,069.1 USD bn in Sep 2025 and a record low of 197.7 USD bn in Dec 2005.

CEIC calculates monthly Government Debt as the sum of External Debt and Domestic Debt and converts it into USD. The Secretary of Finance and Public Credit provides External Debt in USD and Domestic Debt in local currency. The Federal Reserve Board period end market exchange rate is used for currency conversions. Government Debt covers Central Government only.


Related information about Mexico National Government Debt

• In the latest reports, Mexico Consolidated Fiscal Balance recorded a deficit equal to 4.1 % of its Nominal GDP in Sep 2025.
• The country's Government debt accounted for 60.2 % of its Nominal GDP in Sep 2025.
• Mexico Nominal GDP reached 473.6 USD bn in Sep 2025.

The statistic shows the national debt of France from 2020 to 2023, with projections up until 2030. In 2023, the national debt of France amounted to around 3.64 trillion U.S. dollars. For comparison, the Greek debt amounted to approximately 392.27 billion euros that same year. French national debt and developments in taxationFrance currently has one of the highest national debt levels of any of the world’s nations. Debt in the European Union’s second-largest economy is currently at around 97 percent of GDP. The cost of interest on the country’s debt alone comes in at over 1,600 euros per second; every man, woman, and child in France, of which there are 65.3 million in total, takes a share of just under 28 thousand euros of the debt.On 6th May 2012, the incumbent French President was defeated by François Hollande, leader of the French Socialist Party. The new President vowed to develop and change the tax system of France, announcing wide-ranging economic policies in a bid to balance the nation’s budget and right what he considered to be social wrongs. He pledged and supported the separation of lending and investment banks, as well as proposing sweeping changes to the French tax system. The introduction of the measure of capping tax loopholes at a maximum of ten thousand euros per year and questioning the solidarity tax on wealth, the annual direct wealth tax on those with assets above 1.3 million, were also part of Hollande’s proposals. The President has also signaled his intention to implement an income tax rate of 75 percent on revenue earned above one million euros per year. He stated the allocation of the revenue from this tax would be used to develop the deprived suburbs and to balance the nation's budget by 2017. France is a country brimming with big business and millionaires. The nation is home to the most millionaires in Europe; 2.6 million in total.

The United States recorded a trade deficit of 59.55 USD Billion in August of 2025. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Balance of Trade - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

This poll is part of a continuing series of monthly surveys that solicit public opinion on the presidency and on a range of other political and social issues. Respondents were asked to give their opinions of President George W. Bush and his handling of the presidency, foreign policy, and the economy. In addition, respondents were asked to give their opinions of the current economy, and whether it was getting better or worse. Respondents were asked to rate the Democratic and Republican parties as favorable or unfavorable, to indicate whether they believed that Democrats or Republicans had clear plans for the United States and whether there were differences in what each party stood for, and to specify the most important difference between the two parties. Respondents were asked if they voted for United States House of Representatives, what issue was the most important in deciding their vote for House representatives, whether their vote for Congress was a vote for or against President Bush and his policies, whether they would vote for President Bush again in 2004, whether the Democrats should nominate Al Gore, whether they were pleased or disappointed by the outcome of the November elections, and whether it was better or worse to have a president from the same political party that controlled Congress. Respondents were asked to give their opinions on Republicans' control of Congress: whether the United States would be more secure from terrorist attacks, whether the economy would improve, whether taxes would increase or decrease, whether the respondents' families' financial situations would improve, whether big business would have more influence in Washington, whether federal courts would be more conservative, how likely war in Iraq was a result of Republican control in Congress, and whether environmental problems would improve. Respondents were asked how much they believed President Bush cared about their needs and problems and those of Blacks, whether they had confidence in President Bush to deal with an international crisis and the economy, whether his political views were liberal, moderate, or conservative, and whether the religious right had too much or too little influence on the Bush administration. Respondents were asked to give their opinions on tax issues, particularly on: whether the tax cuts were a good idea, whether the tax cuts made a difference in the amount of money retained after taxes, whether they believed the government could reduce the federal budget deficit while cutting taxes, whether they preferred a tax cut or reduced deficit, the effect of the tax cuts on the economy, who benefited most from the tax cuts, whether the tax cuts should be made permanent, and whether using the budget surplus to cut taxes was the best thing to do. Opinions were elicited regarding the environment: whether the federal government was doing enough regulating environmental and safety practices of business, whether requirements and standards can be set too high, whether or not the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska should be approved for oil drilling, whether producing energy or protecting the environment was more important, and what President Bush believed was more important. Respondents were asked whether Social Security would have money available upon their retirement, whether allowing individuals to invest their Social Security taxes on their own was a good idea, and whether the government should make up any losses incurred. On the subject of courts, respondents were asked whether newly court-appointed judges should be reviewed and confirmed by Congress, whether Congress should review and approve judges appointed by President Bush, and whether President Bush's nominees would be more conservative than tolerable. Regarding estate taxes, respondents were asked if they believed that there should be an estate tax for thelargest estates or no estate tax whatsoever, and whether they approved of President Bush's or the Democrats' proposal on estate taxes. Respondents were asked to give opinions on terrorism: whether the Bush administration had a clear plan, whether the government would fail to enact strong anti-terrorism laws or the new anti-terrorism laws would excessively restrict the average person's civil liberties, whether they were willing to allow government agencies to monitor phone calls and emails, and whether the federal government should be allowed to use wiretaps. Other questions focused on whether respondents approved of taking action in Iraq, whether military action would take place in Iraq, whether military action should take place if United States lives could be lost, what the effect on the United States economy would be if the war lasted for months or years, whether terrorism would increase or decrease, whether Saddam Hussein would allow United Nations inspectors full access to search for weapons of mass destruction, whether the United States should bomb Iraqi targets if Saddam Hussein did not allow weapons inspectors in, how likely another terrorist attack was within the next few months, how concerned they were over terrorist attacks in local areas, how confident they were in the United States government to capture or kill Osama bin Laden, whether the war in Afghanistan could be considered a success if bin Laden was not captured or killed, whether bin Laden was still alive, and who was winning the war on terrorism. Respondents were then asked a variety of questions concerning voting behavior: if they had registered to vote, if they voted in the 2000 election, party affiliation, and views on political matters. Background information elicited on respondents includes whether or not they owned a firearm, marital status, religion, education, age, Hispanic descent, race, how long they had lived in their present community, income, and additional phone lines.

This poll, fielded July 9-12, 2009, is part of a continuing series of monthly surveys that solicit public opinion on the presidency and on a range of other political and social issues. Respondents were asked whether they approved of the way Barack Obama was handling the presidency, foreign policy, the situation in Iraq, health care and the economy, whether they thought things in the country were on the right track, their rating of the national economy and whether they thought the economy would get better. Respondents were also asked questions about the economic recession including how long they thought it would last, whether they believed the stimulus package made the economy better, whether the stimulus package would make the economy better in the future, whether the federal government should spend money to stimulate the national economy, whether it was acceptable to raise the deficit to create jobs and stimulate growth, and whether the federal budget deficit affected the respondent's family's financial situation. Several questions about health care were asked including whether President Obama would be able to bring about significant health care reform in his first term, whether respondents would favor government administered health insurance plans, and whether the respondent would consider public health care that anyone could join at any age. Opinions were sought about Sarah Palin, whether respondents heard about her resignation as Governor of Alaska, the reason she resigned, whether she would have the ability to be an effective president, whether the media was harder on her than other political figures, and whether respondents thought she would run for president in 2012. Other topics that were covered included, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, North Korea's development of weapons, Michael Jackson, the United States space program, marijuana, Barack Obama's Supreme Court Justice nominations, how the federal government should use taxpayer's money, how the deficit should be handled, personal finances, and job security. Demographic variables include sex, age, race, marital status, education level, household income, political party affiliation, political philosophy, perceived social class, religious preference, whether the respondent considered themselves to be a born-again Christian, and voter registration status and participation history.

Abstract (en): This poll, fielded February, 2012, and the first of two, is part of a continuing series of monthly surveys that solicits public opinion on a range of political and social issues. Respondents were asked whether they approved of the way Barack Obama was handling his job as president, foreign policy, the economy, the situation in Afghanistan, job creation, and the federal budget deficit. Respondents were also asked whether they approved of Congress, about the condition of the economy, and whether things in the country were on the right track. Multiple questions addressed the 2012 Republican presidential candidates, including respondents' overall opinions of several of the candidates and their policies. Respondents were asked what issues and qualities were most important in deciding who to support for the Republican nomination, what topics they would like to hear them discuss, as well as the Tea Party movement and the amount of influence they have in the Republican Party. Additionally, respondents were questioned whether they voted in the 2008 presidential election and who they voted for, whether they voted or plan to vote in a Democratic or Republican 2012 primary or caucus, their first and second choice for the 2012 Republican nomination for president, which candidate would have the best chance of winning against Barack Obama, and who they would vote for in the 2012 presidential election. Other topics include the housing market, the federal budget deficit, birth control, same-sex marriage, and illegal immigrants. Demographic variables include sex, age, race, education level, household income, religious preference, type of residential area (e.g., urban or rural), whether respondents thought of themselves as born-again Christians, marital status, number of people in the household between the ages of 18 and 29, political party affiliation, political philosophy, and voter registration status. The data contain a weight variable that should be used in analyzing the data. According to the CBS News Web site, the data were weighted to match United States Census Bureau breakdowns on age, sex, race, education, and region of the country. The data were also adjusted for the fact that people who share a telephone with others have less chance to be contacted than people who live alone and have their own telephones, and that households with more than one telephone number have more chances to be called than households with only one telephone number. ICPSR data undergo a confidentiality review and are altered when necessary to limit the risk of disclosure. ICPSR also routinely creates ready-to-go data files along with setups in the major statistical software formats as well as standard codebooks to accompany the data. In addition to these procedures, ICPSR performed the following processing steps for this data collection: Checked for undocumented or out-of-range codes.. Persons aged 18 years and older living in households with telephones in the United States. Smallest Geographic Unit: congressional district A variation of random-digit dialing (RDD) using primary sampling units (PSUs) was employed, consisting of blocks of 100 telephone numbers identical through the eighth digit and stratified by geographic region, area code, and size of place. Phone numbers were dialed from RDD samples of both standard land-lines and cell phones. Within households, respondents were selected using a method developed by Leslie Kish and modified by Charles Backstrom and Gerald Hursh (see Backstrom and Hursh, SURVEY RESEARCH. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press, 1963). telephone interview