Moody's Mood

That other "big three" ratings agency - which for the record, was just as complicit as the execrable Standard & Poors in aiding and abetting the junk mortgage markets that triggered financial crisis -  has affirmed that the United States has “unmatched access to financing, meaning that the U.S. government can support higher debt levels than other governments” and rates the country "AAA."

Excerpts of the basis of their "AAA" assessment, via New York Times "Economix":

1. The unparalleled diversity and size of the U.S. economy and its long record of relatively solid economic growth, based on both demographics and productivity. Even if the short-term economic outlook exhibits some weakness, we believe that the long term remains favorable in relation to many other advanced economies. This provides a solid base for government finance.

2. The global role of the dollar, which underpins continued demand for U.S. dollar assets, including U.S. Treasury obligations. This feature, unique to the U.S., provides unmatched access to financing, meaning that the U.S. government can support higher debt levels than other governments...

3. Relative to other large Aaa-rated governments, the U.S. debt position is somewhat high, but not out of line with the positions of these countries. While the projected trend of U.S. government debt is less favorable without further deficit reduction measures, we believe that eventually such measures will be adopted..

4. A step in the right direction toward deficit reduction was taken on 2 August... Although the political process has been considerably more contentious than usual in the past few months, it finally did produce an agreement. We expect further fiscal measures over time, albeit with vigorous debate over the particulars.