US Credit Rating Downgraded To AA+

[12thMan]

FRPLG, I didn't say the credit rating wasn't important. A credit rating agency, in my opinion, should issue downgrades or upgrades based on economic data; The models and metrics they've been using since the company was founded. Not politics. If you think I believe that the credit rating is somehow trivial, then I don't know what else to tell you.

Daseal, your post summed up exactly what my post said, except the part about the S&P. I maintain, they are a credit rating agency that issues ratings which forecast the credit worthiness of America's sovereign debt and it's ability to service said debt. Period. That's it. They have no business, whatsoever, making one mention of either party by name. I don't care if the White House is set on fire by the Tea Party tomorrow, S&P should stay the f*ck out of our political discussion and shouldn't issue debt forecasts based on the politics of the moment.

But if you want to take their downgrade for what it said, fine. I'm curious about where you stand on them calling for a raise of revenues three separate times; a position that one party was more than willing to accept as a part of an overall package, but there were no suitors on the other side of the aisle. They've pretty much said until revenues are a part of the mix, among other things, they stand by their downgrade.

What's more interesting is that market tanked another 600 points today, but treasuries held their own as investors fled for stability. That tells us two things: The market doesn't see inflation around the corner and it believes, contrary to the downgrade, that treasuries and bonds are a safe haven for investors for the immediate future.

With so much uncertainty, investors were leaving little to chance. Despite the downgrade of U.S. debt, Treasury prices rose, pushing yields lower, as investors fled into the relative safety of government-backed debt.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury fell to 2.34% from 2.56% late Friday.

"The Treasury market seems to be oblivious to the fact the U.S.' credit rating was downgraded," said Quincy Krosby, market strategist with Prudential Financial.