First, from ABC News, see Five Easy-to-Understand Effects of a Downgrade.
Second, more generally (and good for classroom use), the Cato Institute has a short video on the importance of the federal credit rating (embedded below).
Third, although the change in rating is important, that hardly says the rating agencies are correct now, or in other evaluations. They’re not always right.
(Locally, the Moody’s rating for Whitewater’s tech-park bonds, and other obligations, looks like nothing so much as a variously superficial, over-hyped, or shoddy analysis. See, On Whitewater, Wisconsin’s Recent Bond Rating, from January 2010.)
Finally, those who are trying to assign blame to officeholders now in Washington should look back a few years: the previous Congress, and previous Administration, share responsibility for the present situation.