Top Items:

Govt Officials: US Expecting S&P Downgrade — Based on ‘Serious Mistake’ in Analysis* — Two government officials tell ABC News that the federal government is expecting and preparing for bond rating agency Standard & Poor's to downgrade the rating of U.S. debt from its current AAA value.
Discussion:
TPMDC, The Agonist, Booman Tribune, Politics, The Gateway Pundit, Taylor Marsh, Pajamas Media, Guardian, PoliticusUSA, The Lonely Conservative, HotAirPundit, Jared Bernstein, MarketBeat, Daily Kos, The Raw Story, Wonkette, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS, Vox Popoli, The Other McCain, FT Alphaville, The Right Scoop, Capital Tonight, Gretawire and Donklephant
RELATED:


United States loses AAA credit rating from S&P — (Reuters) - The United States lost its top-notch AAA credit rating from Standard & Poor's on Friday in an unprecedented reversal of fortune for the world's largest economy. — S&P cut the long-term U.S. credit rating by one notch to AA-plus …

Math Error Fuels Fight Over Rating — A mathematical error discovered late Friday by Treasury Department officials threw into limbo, at least temporarily, plans by ratings firm Standard & Poor's to downgrade the top-notch AAA credit rating the U.S. has held for 70 years, people familiar with the matter said.
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, JammieWearingFool, Hot Air, The Moderate Voice and Tim Blair

S&P and the USA — OK, so Standard and Poors has gone ahead with the threatened downgrade. It's a strange situation. — 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 …
Discussion:
Guardian and Hullabaloo

S&P downgrades U.S. credit rating for first time — Standard & Poor's announced Friday night that it has downgraded the United States credit rating for the first time, dealing a huge symbolic blow to the world's economic superpower in what was a sharply worded critique of the American political system.

S&P Downgrades U.S. Debt Rating — Press Release — Standard & Poor's took the unprecedented step of downgrading the U.S. government's “AAA” sovereign credit rating Friday in a move that could send shock waves through global. The following is a press release from Standard & Poor's:
Discussion:
Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Free exchange, The Daily Caller, The Gateway Pundit, Erick's blog and The Raw Story

S&P Downgrades US To AA+, Outlook Negative - Full Text — United States of America Long-Term Rating Lowered To ‘AA+’ On Political Risks And Rising Debt Burden; Outlook Negative — We have lowered our long-term sovereign credit rating on the United States of America to ‘AA+’ from ‘AAA’ and affirmed the ‘A-1+’ short-term rating.
Discussion:
Don Surber, Sky Dancing, FrumForum, Doug Ross, Pajamas Media, Atlas Shrugs and ECHIDNE of the snakes

United States of America Long-Term Rating Lowered To ‘AA+’ Due To Political Risks, Rising Debt Burden; Outlook Negative … TORONTO (Standard & Poor's) Aug. 5, 2011—Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said today that it lowered its long-term sovereign credit rating on the United States of America to ‘AA+’ from ‘AAA’.
Discussion:
Libertarian Republican, The Gateway Pundit, DealBook and NewsBusters.org

U.S. Debt Rating in Limbo as Treasury Finds Math Mistake by S&P in Downgrade Warning — A mathematical error discovered late Friday by Treasury Department officials has thrown into limbo — at least temporarily — plans by ratings firm Standard & Poor's to downgrade the top-notch AAA credit rating …
Discussion:
Pajamas Media and FT Alphaville

A few quick thoughts on the likely pending S&P downgrade — 1. The Republican Party made a big, big mistake passing up a chance for a “grand bargain” with Obama. It's time to be a realist about revenue increases, rather than signaling ideological purity. And let's get a better rather …
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, Washington Post and MarketBeat


Boehner's Folly Leads To S&P Downgrade of US Debt — I'm no expert, but I don't think S&P downgrading its rating of US debt will, as such, have any really big practical implications other than becoming the next political football. If you look at S&P's definition of the AA rating, after all …
Discussion:
Mother Jones and HotAirPundit


S.& P. Cuts U.S. Debt Rating for First Time — WASHINGTON — Standard & Poor's removed the United States government from its list of risk-free borrowers for the first time on Friday night, a downgrade that is freighted with symbolic significance but carries few clear financial implications.
Discussion:
Online NewsHour


S&P Cuts U.S. Rating for First Time on Deficit Reduction Pact — The U.S. had its AAA credit rating downgraded for the first time by Standard & Poor's, which slammed the nation's political process and said lawmakers failed to cut spending enough to reduce record deficits.
Discussion:
The Huffington Post, Gothamist, The New Civil Rights Movement and Pajamas Media

Reid: S&P downgrade backs Dems' call for more revenue
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers and JammieWearingFool

S&P DOWNGRADES US AAA Rating
Discussion:
The Political Carnival, Patterico's Pontifications and Daily Kos

Report: S&P Preparing to Downgrade the U.S.—But Why?
Discussion:
Viking Pundit

US Faces Ratings Downgrade from S&P
Discussion:
Jared Bernstein, Politics and Balloon Juice

U.S. triple-A debt rating cut by Standard & Poor's
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland

S&P downgrades U.S. credit rating
Discussion:
Firedoglake, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, CNN and The Hill

US Braces for Possible S&P Downgrade: Source
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway, CNN and Questions and Observations

Rick Perry's College Transcript: A Lot Of Cs and Ds … WASHINGTON — As governor of Texas, Rick Perry has pursued a controversial agenda that would gut Texas' vaunted public university system in favor of something that more closely resembles a business. — As the Washington Post reported on Thursday …
RELATED:

The Incredible Shrinking Tea Party — If there's one thing the debt ceiling battle revealed, it's that the Tea Party continues to enjoy outsized influence in Washington in general and over the GOP in particular. — So it's interesting to note that according to the internals of today's New York Times poll …
Discussion:
Hullabaloo, Crooks and Liars, Outside the Beltway, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Daily Kos and Washington Monthly
RELATED:


State Fair melees produce 11 injuries, 31 arrests — By Don Walker, Mike Johnson and Breann Schossow of the Journal Sentinel — Unprecedented violence on the opening night of the Wisconsin State Fair by rampaging youths prompted extraordinary measures Friday: The head of the fair implemented …
Discussion:
Power Line
RELATED:

Why Democrats are very nervous about Wisconsin — Publicly, Democrats are projecting great confidence about the likelihood of taking back the Wisconsin state senate in the upcoming recall elections. They claim their private polling shows them ahead or tied in all six races targeting GOPers for recall …
Discussion:
Roll Call, Mother Jones, Daily Kos, MoJo Articles and The Mahablog


Obama's Hip-Hop BBQ Didn't Create Jobs — POLITICO EXCLUSIVE — The President's private 50th birthday bash, not listed on his public schedule: His gift to the press corps was a travel/photo lid shortly after 4 p.m., prompting what pooler Julie Mason called “general cheering in WH workspace.”
Discussion:
And So it Goes in Shreveport, msnbc.com, The Moderate Voice, Wizbang, Obama Foodorama, The New York Observer, The Gateway Pundit, ThinkProgress, The Wire, Salon, Runnin' Scared, Wonkette, Mediaite, Weasel Zippers, The Note, The Raw Story, New York Magazine, Gawker, Pundit & Pundette, The Politico and Lynn Sweet, more at Mediagazer »
RELATED:

Fox Nation: Obama's Hip-Hop BBQ Didn't Create Jobs
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, Washington Post and Washington Monthly


Wisconsin to NOLA: Rep. Pocan kicked out of ALEC event; ThinkProgress reporters accosted — State Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison), a dues paying member of the American Legislative Exchange Council, was kicked out of a corporate sponsored reception last night. Pocan is in New Orleans attending …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, The Raw Story and Rainforest Action Network Blog