- The ‘not-so-super’ deficit commission is very unlikely to come up with a credible deficit-reduction plan. The committee is more divided than the overall Congress… The credit rating agencies have strongly suggested that further rating cuts are likely if Congress does not come up with a credible long-run plan. Hence, we expect at least one credit downgrade in late November or early December when the supercommittee crashes.
- Ethan Harris, economist for Bank of America Merril Lynch • Speaking on the looming possibility the U.S. could suffer another downgrade to their credit rating, this one in late November or early December. The last downgrade to the U.S. rating was not without controversy — one U.S. official called it a “a facts-be-damned decision,” over an accounting error by Standard and Poor’s that incorrectly inflated their deficit projections by nearly $2 trillion. Whatever might cause a credit downgrade, though, that it’s a dire consequence to be avoided is not in dispute, and rumblings are growing louder that the U.S. may end up biting this bullet again soon. source