Read the Disastrous Report Here: First-Ever Credit Downgrade of USA by S&P

In a report released late Friday night, one of the largest and most respected creditworthiness ratings agencies, Standard & Poors, downgraded the USA itself for the first time in modern history. In the report, Standard & Poors notes, "We have lowered our long-term sovereign credit rating on the United States of America to 'AA+' from 'AAA'." The ratings agency explained that most recent fiscal plan of Congress and the Obama administration "falls short" of what is necessary to stabilize the United States' debt obligations. The report also notes, "More broadly, the downgrade reflects our view that the effectiveness, stability, and predictability of American policymaking and political institutions have weakened." Not surprisingly, the agency's outlook for the United States of America remains Negative. Friday night's epic downgrade is the first of its kind in modern history; USA credit has never been downgraded by a major ratings agency prior to Standard & Poor's report. Indeed, although other firms have lowered their outlook on the USA in recent months, Standard & Poors is the first of the three major rating agencies (beside Fitch and Moody's) to lower its actual quality rating of USA creditworthiness. "The political brinksmanship of recent months highlights what we see as America's governance and policymaking becoming less stable, less effective, and less predictable than what we previously believed," said Standard & Poors. The past week of trading has demonstrated heightened levels of fear, with spikes in the Volatility Index of over 30% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average losing 5.75% of its value during the past five days alone. To read the entire, unprecedented report from Standard & Poors, simply click here.