Saturday, August 6, 2011

Right's 'Madness' and Standard & Poor's Ineptitude Conjure Downgrade - Paul Krugman

On one hand, there is a case to be made that the madness of the right has made America a fundamentally unsound nation. And yes, it is the madness of the right: if not for the extremism of anti-tax Republicans, we would have no trouble reaching an agreement that would ensure long-run solvency.

On the other hand, it’s hard to think of anyone less qualified to pass judgment on America than the rating agencies. The people who rated subprime-backed securities are now declaring that they are the judges of fiscal policy? Really?


Just to make it perfect, it turns out that S&P got the math wrong by $2 trillion, and after much discussion conceded the point — then went ahead with the downgrade.  More than that, everything I’ve heard about S&P’s demands suggests that it’s talking nonsense about the US fiscal situation.

In short, S&P is just making stuff up — and after the mortgage debacle, they really don’t have that right.  So this is an outrage — not because America is A-OK, but because these people are in no position to pass judgment. 


The full article is available here