Poor’s has received some justified criticism for the analysis behind its recent decision to downgrade US government debt; after all, there was little economic news that could explain the move’s timing. But S&amp;P’s assessment of the political situation is on target: by creating a dysfunctional paralysis at the heart of government, the Tea Party has shown that it is willing to impose dramatic costs on the broader economy and to ensure significantly slower growth.
标准普尔最近调降了美国国债评级，这一决定所依据的分析受到了不少有理的批评；说到底，标普这样做并没有多少经济学上的理由。但标普切中的是对政治状况的评估：通过让政府核心陷入瘫痪，茶党的意图已经昭然若揭了：他们想给更广泛的经济带来重大成本、确保增长大大降速。&#160;