It’s done. S&P did what many had only thought they would do. Stripping the US of it’s AAA rating, citing a negative outlook, will provide another hit to an already fragile business and consumer confidence landscape. The US’s fiscal path and its broken political system are to blame. The political scene is ‘so caustic that lawmakers are unable to make the tough choices needed to correct the debt-to-GDP rise’. A future downgrade had been voiced, but a negative outlook on top of a downgrade was not factored into expectations. It suggests a potentially sharper bond market sell off over time with European style ... (full story)