THE FLAG
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🇺🇸 America's Credit Score

🇺🇸 America's Credit Score

Plus, is it a bear or a man?

August 04, 2023

Good morning, and happy Friday. An enterprising young boy was looking for work around his neighborhood so he could buy a new game console. Then the police were called.

Plus, this bear at a Chinese zoo has been making the rounds across the internet — because some believe it’s really just a man in a costume.

Also, rolling over your 401(k) should be as easy as rolling over. And, with today’s sponsor, it can be…

QUICK CLICKS

AP Psych Banned, Sailors Charged, Lizzo’s Denial

US: Trump pleads not guilty to charges in 2020 election indictment (USA Today)

US: Florida effectively bans AP Psychology course over LGBTQ content, College Board says (NBC News)

US: 2 US sailors hit with charges tied to national security, China (FOX News)

Entertainment: Lizzo denies hostile environment, weight-shaming allegations by former employees (NPR)

World: International pressure mounts on leaders of coup in Niger (AP News)

World: Mexico’s president attacks ‘inhumane’ floating barriers deployed by Texas (CNN)

World: Tensions high on NATO’s border with Belarus after Wagner troops move closer (CNN)

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ECONOMY

America’s Credit Score

On Tuesday, Fitch Ratings downgraded the United States government’s credit rating, citing rising debt at the federal, state, and local levels and a “steady deterioration in standards of governance” over the past two decades. The rating was cut Tuesday one notch to AA+ from AAA, the highest possible rating. The new rating is still well into investment grade.

Reporting from the Left: US credit rating downgraded over rising debt, ‘standards of governance’ (Al Jazeera)

Reporting from the Right: US’ Credit Rating Downgraded (Daily Caller)

From The Flag: This is only the second time in American history the credit rating has been cut. A lower credit rating, over time, could raise borrowing costs for the US government. The decision illustrates one way that growing political polarization and repeated Washington standoffs over spending and taxes could end up costing taxpayers. Here’s what both sides are saying.

LEFT-LEANING SENTIMENT

A Flawed Decision and “Trump Downgrade”

The Biden administration is firmly sticking to the narrative that the Trump administration and Republican extremism are responsible for the downgrade.
We got here through decades of Republican sabotage whenever a Democrat was in the White House. Biden needs to do more to stop it.
There are three things Americans should know: 1. Fitch’s rationale is flawed. 2. The impact will be minimal. 3. This should still inspire reform.

Inside how Biden’s frustrated advisers crafted an ‘aggressive’ response to Fitch’s downgrade of US credit Kayla Tausche and Sam Possum, CNN: “White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the White House ‘strongly disagrees’ with Fitch’s assessment and said it ‘defies reality’ to downgrade the US given the current economic recovery as she also cast the blame on the GOP. ‘It’s clear that extremism by Republican officials – from cheerleading default, to undermining governance and democracy, to seeking to extend deficit-busting tax giveaways for the wealthy and corporations – is a continued threat to our economy,’ Jean-Pierre said. The Biden campaign was quick to follow, framing it as a ‘Trump downgrade’ and a ‘direct result of an extreme MAGA Republican agenda defined by chaos, callousness, and recklessness.’ … The double-barrel messaging from the White House and Biden campaign echoed the debt ceiling fight earlier this year when the Biden administration leaned into the argument that the debt had been accumulated over centuries and ballooned during former President Donald Trump’s tenure.”

Republican Chaos Is to Blame for the Fitch Downgrade Timothy Noah, The New Republic: “‘There has been a steady deterioration in standards of governance over the last 20 years’ said Fitch. Fitch wasn’t referring explicitly to January 6, of course, but it’s all part of a single narrative that begins with Ronald Reagan declaring ‘Government is the problem’ in January 1981 and Republicans trying to sabotage the executive branch ever since through insolvency, privatization, mismanagement, hyperpartisanship, delegitimization of regulatory authority, and finally, on January 6, outright insurrection. … The main specific Fitch cited was ‘repeated debt-limit political standoffs and last-minute resolutions’ that ‘have eroded confidence in fiscal management.’ Can anyone dispute with a straight face that, here too, the blame lies with Republicans? The two big debt limit fights occurred in 2011 and 2023. In both instances, Republicans had just regained control of the House of Representatives.”

One more opinion piece from the Left: Three takeaways on Fitch’s weird downgrade of the U.S. credit rating Editorial Board, The Washington Post

RIGHT-LEANING SENTIMENT

Biden Admin Refuses to Accept Responsibility

Republican lawmakers are blaming President Biden’s brinksmanship over the debt limit for the downgrade.
Florida Governor and Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis laid the blame on Biden’s economic policies.
Instead of taking responsibility for the situation, Biden and his political allies rushed to blame the Trump administration.

Biden 'pushed America's credit rating off the ledge' with Fitch downgrade, GOP says Elizabeth Elkind, FOX Business: “Biden’s GOP critics said it was Biden’s weeks-long refusal to negotiate with Republicans on the debt limit earlier this year, as well as his expensive progressive policies, that led to the downgrade. ‘When Fitch specifically cited the problem of ‘last minute’ resolutions they may as well have noted Biden’s refusal to negotiate with Republicans for months, while insisting on even more wasteful spending,’ House Ways and Means Committee Chair Jason Smith, R-Mo., said on Tuesday. ‘President Biden’s brinksmanship – not to mention the $10 trillion in new spending he and Washington Democrats passed over the past two years – pushed America’s credit rating off the ledge,’ Smith said. ‘Now families and small businesses already dealing with soaring interest rates and lost wages from Biden’s inflation crisis will also have to face the consequences of a reduced confidence in America’s sovereign debt.’”

America's credit rating downgraded under Biden; White House rushes to blame Republicans Joseph Mackinnon, TheBlaze: “Pennsylvania Rep. Brendan F. Boyle, ranking member of the House Budget Committee, similarly sought to shunt responsibility, claiming in a statement, ‘Fitch's decision to downgrade rests on the shoulders of Speaker McCarthy and the extreme MAGA Republicans who openly rooted for default.’ ‘Republican extremism and recklessness has undercut the American economy,’ added Boyle, suggesting Biden and Democrats ‘are committed to fiscal responsibility.’ Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) claimed that the ‘downgrade by Fitch shows that House Republicans' reckless brinkmanship and flirting with default has negative consequences for the country.’”

One more opinion piece from the Right: DeSantis Rips Biden Over U.S. Credit Being Downgraded: Florida’s Rating ‘Nation’s Blueprint’ Ryan Saavedra, The Daily Caller

FLAG THIS

The Push for “Bidenomics”

In recent months, the Biden administration has been pushing forward with “Bidenomics” to highlight progress in the economy as inflation slows down and more jobs are added.

However, polling suggests this push has not been very effective. According to the CNBC All-American Economic Survey, Americans still predominantly disapprove of Biden’s handling of the economy. 58% disapprove, whereas only 37% approve of his economic credentials (CNBC).

Do you approve or disapprove of Biden's handling of the economy?

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WATERCOOLER

Custer Attacked, Barbie Test, ‘Merican Canadians

On This Day in 1873: While protecting a railroad survey party in Montana, Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer and his 7th Cavalry clash for the first time with the local Sioux Native Americans, who will defeat them three years later at the Little Big Horn.

NBC News: ‘Barbie’ is becoming a new litmus test for dating men

Big Think: Ancestry tests are “genetic astrology.” We must re-learn everything we know about DNA and cells

GQ: The Science Behind Measuring (and Reversing) Your Body’s “Biological Age”

Today I learned there is a town in Texas USA named "Canadian" — and its very ‘Merican citizens are called "Canadians”.

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