Story in the NYT:
Standard & Poor’s removed the United States government from its list of risk-free borrowers for the first time on Friday night, a downgrade that is freighted with symbolic significance but carries few clear financial implications.
The company, one of three major agencies that offer advice to investors in debt securities, said it was cutting its rating of long-term federal debt to AA+, one notch below the top grade of AAA. It described the decision as a judgment about the nation’s leaders, writing that “the gulf between the political parties” had reduced its confidence in the government’s ability to manage its finances.
Some commentary:
- Standard & Poor’s has been wrong before. But they’re right now.
- The U.S. is downgraded. Now what?
- U.S. Faces Possible Ratings Downgrade From S&P
- Why Has S&P Downgraded the U.S.?
