If you live in one of these five states, you better hope the republicans stop fucking around. 
July 19, 2011, 1:48 p.m. EDT
Moody's mulls downgrade on five states
By John Kell
Moody's Investors Service placed its ratings on five Aaa-rated states on watch for downgrade, saying if the U.S. government's ratings were to be lowered, those states would face probable cuts as well.The ratings agency's action on
Maryland, New Mexico, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia affect a combined $24 billion of general obligation and related debt. It follows Moody's announcement last week it would consider a downgrade on the U.S. government's bond rating, citing the "rising possibility that the statutory debt limit will not be raised on a timely basis," which would lead to a default on U.S. Treasury debt obligations.
Moody's on Tuesday said it would review each of the five states on a case-by-case basis and plans to act on the ratings within seven to 10 days following a sovereign action.
Meanwhile, the Aaa ratings and stable outlook for 10 other states--Alaska, Delaware, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, North Carolina, Texas, Utah and Vermont--were not changed. In Moody's view, those states are currently resilient to a one-notch downgrade of the U.S. government.
The risk factors facing the states that could see a downgrade include macroeconomic sensitivity, capital markets reliance and the dependence on federal revenue.The debt ceiling must be increased by Congress by Aug. 2, or the Treasury won't be able to meet all of its obligations, including potentially the ability to service its debt. Negotiations between President Barack Obama and Congressional leaders, meanwhile, appear to have ground to a halt. An earlier round of talks led by Vice President Joe Biden also failed to reach an accord.
