Rating agency Moody's downgrades US credit rating

DER SPIEGEL Rating agency Moody's downgrades US credit rating 2 hrs. • The US has lost its top credit rating from Moody's. One reason for the decision is the growth of national debt. The rating agency Moody's has withdrawn its top credit rating from the US. Moody's downgraded the country's credit rating on Friday from its top rating of AAA to Aa1. The rating agency cited the growth of national debt and the interest the US has to pay on its debt as the reason. Over the years, US governments and the US Congress have not adopted any measures to counter the "trend of large annual budget deficits and rising interest costs," Moody's stated. The budget plans currently being discussed also do not suggest that government spending and deficits in the world's largest economy could decrease. A statement from the US government was not immediately available. Moody's is the last of the three major rating agencies to withdraw its top rating from the United States. S&P and Fitch had already done so in previous years. Moody's's current decision is bad news for US President Donald Trump. Also on Friday, the president's tax cut plans were defeated in the House Budget Committee due to opposition from politicians from Trump's Republican Party. Trump wants to use legislation to extend tax cuts, some of which were already passed during his first presidency in 2017. However, experts say the plans could lead to more than five trillion dollars in additional US debt over the course of a decade. This has caused discontent among many Republicans. Five Republican members of the House Budget Committee therefore refused to support Trump and, along with the Democrats, prevented the plans from being passed.