DNC chairwoman blames Tea Party ‘tyrants’ for US credit-rating downgrade
The head of the Democratic National Committee joined Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) on Monday in casting blame for the U.S. credit downgrade on the Tea Party movement.
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) quoted Kerry’s comments made Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” and noted, “Truer words never spoken.”
{mosads}Kerry, commenting Sunday on Standard & Poor’s downgrade of the national credit rating from AAA to AA+ on Friday, cast the downgrade as a reflection of the influence of the Tea Party movement on the deficit negotiations.
“This is the Tea Party downgrade because a minority of people in the House of Representatives countered even the will of many Republicans in the United States Senate who were prepared to do a bigger deal,” Kerry said.
Wasserman Schultz noted in a tweet Monday that she agreed with Kerry, calling the Tea Party “tyrants” who blocked a more comprehensive bargain on the debt ceiling.
The White House also indicated on Saturday that Standard & Poor’s downgrade could have been avoided if congressional leaders had reached the “grand bargain” promoted by President Obama.
“The president repeatedly called for substantial deficit reduction through both long-term entitlement changes and revenues through tax reform, with additional measures to spark jobs and strengthen our recovery,” press secretary Jay Carney said in a statement.
The credit rating agency announced that its decision was based both on last week’s debt-limit deal, which it said “falls short” of expectations, as well as doubts as to whether Congress and the White House can reach a broader deficit solution “anytime soon.”
More news from The Hill:
♦ Markets open low after downgrade concerns
♦ S&P downgrades Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac
♦ White House to issue waivers for ‘No Child Left Behind’
♦ Issa subpoenas documents on Boeing complaint
♦ Groups to Obama: Use ‘any legal means’ to halt fracking
♦ DHS hosts cybersecurity conference
Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.