"The downgrading of America’s credit rating by Fitch represents a historic failure of leadership by both political parties and the Executive branch," Senator Joe Manchin, a Democrat from West Virginia, stressed in a statement.
Manchin pointed out that Fitch specifically cited the decline in governance, erosion of cooperation in the federal government and ballooning national debt as reasons for its decision to lower the US credit rating.
On Tuesday, Fitch Ratings announced that it downgraded the credit rating of the United States from AAA to AA, citing fiscal deterioration over the next three years. The rating agency also said that it found troubling the debt limit standoffs between the two major political parties in Congress and their last-minute resolutions to avoid a debt default.
Manchin noted that Fitch's decision is a "stark warning" and its signal must not be ignored. The senator also emphasized the necessity to fund the government and address the national debt, otherwise the United States could lose its superpower status and the confidence of its allies.
The senator said September will be a crucial month for solving the problem because the deadline to fund the federal government is approaching and urged lawmakers to take the necessary fiscal and budgetary steps to restore the US credit rating.