Who’s Afraid of Standard & Poor’s?

Get your news from a source that’s not owned and controlled by oligarchs. Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily.

It’s not like Paul Krugman needs my help in spreading his opinions, but people really ought to be paying a little more attention to the fact that right after S&P’s warning yesterday morning about U.S. debt, interest rates on U.S. debt…..fell. Why? Because demand for U.S. securities rose and their price went up, as the chart below of a typical treasury index fund shows.

In other words, actual bond traders not only ignored S&P, they decided that U.S. debt was even safer than they thought before. And if S&P’s warning didn’t have any impact on trading in actual treasuries, it almost certainly didn’t have any impact on anything else, including the stock market. As Krugman says, “People, this was a non-event.”

THIS IS URGENT! DON’T MISS THE DEADLINE.

Until MIDNIGHT only, every dollar you give goes twice as far to support kickass reporting. This is the moment to make your support count double.

In a climate where journalists face mounting pressure to back down, stay silent, or soften their reporting, Mother Jones refuses to flinch. We’re pushing back against intimidation and delivering fierce, independent journalism that holds power accountable—no matter who’s trying to silence us.

But here’s the reality: We’re a nonprofit newsroom with zero corporate backing and no financial cushion. We depend entirely on readers like you to fund the investigations that matter most. The 2X match deadline is just hours away. We need you on the team right now. Please chip in and double your impact.

THIS IS URGENT! DON’T MISS THE DEADLINE.

Until MIDNIGHT only, every dollar you give goes twice as far to support kickass reporting. This is the moment to make your support count double.

In a climate where journalists face mounting pressure to back down, stay silent, or soften their reporting, Mother Jones refuses to flinch. We’re pushing back against intimidation and delivering fierce, independent journalism that holds power accountable—no matter who’s trying to silence us.

But here’s the reality: We’re a nonprofit newsroom with zero corporate backing and no financial cushion. We depend entirely on readers like you to fund the investigations that matter most. The 2X match deadline is just hours away. We need you on the team right now. Please chip in and double your impact.

We Recommend

Latest

Sign up for our free newsletter

Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

Get our award-winning magazine

Save big on a full year of investigations, ideas, and insights.

Subscribe

Support our journalism

Help Mother Jones' reporters dig deep with a tax-deductible donation.

Donate