Fitch’s US downgrade is stoking the very fight it warned against

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Washingtons hostile political factions quickly took up Fitch Ratings downgrade of US government debt as a new weapon of political combat highlighting in part why the firm stripped the US of its top-tier credit rating...

Democrats and Republicans on Wednesday traded blame for the downgrade, with a group of hard-right conservatives promising to dig in during a looming spending fight that could shut down the federal government as soon as Oct. 1...

The bitter recriminations echoed the concerns raised by Fitch in announcing its decision after the close of financial markets on Tuesday..

President Joe Biden, who has spent the summer promoting his Bidenomics agenda as the US economy shows surprising strength, was privately frustrated over the Fitch decision and expressed irritation to his team, according to people familiar with the matter who requested anonymity to describe private conversations...

The House and Senate are taking conflicting paths in setting discretionary spending levels despite an agreement between Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to set an $1.59 trillion cap for fiscal 2024, cutting $12 billion from the current fiscal year, as part of deal to suspend the debt limit...

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