Posted on 08/05/2011 8:37:42 PM PDT by STARWISE
The US Treasury has hit back against a Standard and Poor's downgrade of its AAA credit rating, saying there was a $2 trillion dollar error in the agency's calculations.
"A judgment flawed by a 2 trillion dollar error speaks for itself," a Treasury spokesman said, just after the US lost its AAA rating for the first time ever and was downgraded to a AA+.
*snip*
Moody's and a third ratings agency, Fitch, say they continue to study the deficit plan to see if the US merits being kept in their ranks of AAA countries.
Earlier, an official close to the discussions with S&P said: "There are deep and fundamental flaws with the S&P analysis."
(Excerpt) Read more at breitbart.com ...
“where were our pubies?”
Just checked...same place they’ve been for many years.
I’m sorry. Could not resist.
Deserve... nah, but almost certainly they think we’re entitled
I'm afraid if you don't know the answer to that, there's little hope for you.
Then .. the WashPost just has to put this on their front page (from a NYSlimes poll, naturally).
The incredible shrinking Tea Party
Number of supporters are at an all time low.
ROFL!!
Wake up, buy a clue, Washington! The fight goes on BECAUSE of the Tea Party, which I predict will be growing ever larger and more rebellious.
The IMF considers the US debt about $203T, not just the $14T+ officially claimed, and operates on that basis with the US. Look up Kotlikoff’s figures. I do not think S&P erred at all.
Weiss Ratings (high quality bank and credit union rater) beat the bunch to the punch with their rating of the US as C-minus, equivalent to just above junk in S&P terms, recently. S&P has been kind. Govt., likes teleprompters, and wishes S&P to operate with one.
Weiss rating article:
http://ml-implode.com/viewnews/2011-07-15_WeissRatingsDowngradesUnitedStatesDebttoCMinus.html
Weiss Ratings Downgrades United States Debt to C-Minus
2011-07-15 — weissratings.com
“Weiss Ratings, an independent rating agency of U.S. financial institutions and sovereign debts, has downgraded the debt of the United States government from C to C-minus.
The C-minus rating for the U.S. reflects a continued deterioration in the weaknesses cited in the Weiss Ratings release of April 28, 2011, including heavy debt burdens, shaky international stability, and poor economic health.
Weiss Ratings senior financial analyst Gavin Magor commented: “Our downgrade today is not contingent on the outcome of the debt ceiling debate in Washington. It is driven exclusively by the numbers, which indicate that, in addition to a decline in the long-standing weaknesses we noted three months ago, the U.S. has already lost the golden halo that helped guarantee liquidity and acceptance of its government securities in global markets.”
On the Weiss Ratings scale, which ranges from A (excellent) to E (very weak), a C-minus rating is the approximate equivalent of a triple-B-minus on the scales used by other credit rating agencies, or approximately one notch above speculative grade (junk).
About Weiss: By adhering to its independent business model, Weiss outperformed Standard and Poor’s, Moody’s, A.M. Best and Duff & Phelps (now Fitch) in warning of future life and health insurance company failures according to a 1994 study by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), while also outperforming its competitors in identifying the safest insurers, according to its follow-up study using the GAO’s research methodology.
http://weissratings.com/Login.aspx?a=r
U.S. Sovereign Debt Rating Close to “Junk”
by Weiss Ratings | July 14, 2011
“Weiss Ratings is very close to downgrading the sovereign debt rating of the United States one more notch to a ‘C –’, which will put it just one notch above junk,” Martin Weiss, President of Weiss Ratings told CNBC on Wednesday.
“In April, Weiss Ratings gave the U.S. sovereign debt rating a ‘C’. A ‘C’ is equivalent to approximately a triple-B on the S&P, Moody’s and Fitch scales. Its two notches above junk, Weiss told CNBC in May. Weiss added that while the rating was weak, the debt situation was not in a danger zone that should trigger panic.
In yesterday’s interview with CNBC, Weiss responded to Moody’s Rating Agency placing their U.S. triple-A rating on review for a downgrade in the coming weeks on mounting concern that legislators will fail to raise the debt limit in time to avert potentially drastic effects.
The U.S. government is deadlocked in negotiations to raise the $14.3 trillion debt ceiling by August 2 before a potential default. President Obama announced on Tuesday, that failure to increase the debt ceiling would jeopardize payments to Social Security and Veteran’s benefit recipients.
Weiss believes a downgrade by the large rating agencies is long overdue, noting that the top-notch standard assigned to the U.S. is unfair to investors and savers as they are not being compensated for the level of risk they are taking.
“The U.S. has a huge debt load compared to most other countries,” he said. “And, has a very unstable economy over the last 10 years compared to most other countries.” The U.S. ratio of debt-to-gross domestic product is currently over 90 percent.
“The only thing that’s really holding up the U.S. debt rating is a widespread international acceptance for U.S. Treasury securities and nice strong liquid market. But even that might be coming into question,” according to Weiss.
Weiss is hopeful that a last minute deal will fend off a potential crisis for U.S. and world markets. He pointed out that three years ago the legislature’s failure to pass a bailout package sent markets into a tailspin, and forced Congress to sign off on it.
He said, “We might see a similar scenario here in the debt ceiling debate, a failure at first and then a desperate deal in the thirteenth hour to rescue the situation at the last minute.”
Based on the government’s continued failure to agree on terms for raising the U.S. debt ceiling and the looming deadline, Weiss Ratings is reviewing its current ‘C’, rating signaling consumers that a ‘C-’ rating might be a fairer assessment under the circumstances.”
Well, at least we now know what the spin will be from the Obammunists: it’s all really just a little math error by ignorant fools at Standard & Poors, nothing to worry about folks, move along now, those fools at Standard & Poor’s don’t know how to use a calculator.
No doubt the Obammunists know a heck of a lot of really ignorant folks in the U.S. will buy their Big Lie about a “math error”. One of the big advantages of an uneducated populace is that so many will believe the lies of their fascists führers.
Clarence Thomas’ Coke can?
Elect the first black president and he f*** ups the credit rating for the first time in US history. If you’d written a script about this last week, you’d have been called a racist.
>>DAMN him!<<
.
Damn those who voted for him. Their hope for change has been fulfilled.
Obviously, they forgot to count Obama’s stash. It’s freshly printed $100,000,000,000 bills.
Now we know why they were so hell bent on new math!
The arrogance of this administration never ceases to amaze me.
This analysis has been done. See Laurence Kotlikoff's The Coming Generational Storm. Using GAAP, the US is in debt of over $100T.
However, note that this assumes that Social Security and Medicare are "contracts" in the sense of a pension fund or annuity. They are not (see Nestor v. Fleming). Nonetheless, Kotlikoff believes the government will attempt to honor these intergenerational "promises", and he sees intentional hyperinflation as the most likely policy choice.
The WH is probably complaining because S&P used real spending, real revenue and real deficit numbers, instead of “baseline budgeting” numbers.
Yep S&P is going to say, “Never Mind”.
Ahh I wish I could laugh, but I’m feelin’ kinda of down tonight.
Bush’s fault — worth a smile :)
I don’t know why it’s taking Obozo so long to nominate Barney Frank to be Secy of the Treasury, we know how well Barney understands finance, he’s the Pelosicrats’ go-to guy.
Wasn’t the recent budget agreement a judgement-flawed 2 trillion dollar error which spoke for itself?
This idiot-ridden can huff and puff and argue this and blame that all they want, won’t change the downgrade or further downgrades. These people are full blown clueless idiots who would argue and blame anything and everything. =.=
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