"S&P senior director Joydeep Mukherji said that the stability and effectiveness of American political institutions were undermined by the fact that ‘people in the political arena were even talking about a potential default. That a country even has such voices, albeit a minority, is something notable. This kind of rhetoric is not common amongst AAA sovereigns.’"
Josh Boak, “S&P: Debt default skeptics fueled ratings downgrade,” Politico (Aug. 11, 2011).
