Defaulting on the nation's debt would be cataclysmic. The U.S. Treasury's Aaa rating is the one constant in the world's financial system. When times are bad anywhere on the planet, global investors flock to Treasury bonds because they know they will get their money back.

The most important point is, in a time of crisis, there is no way out but for the government to be bold and aggressive.

They called me the sexiest economist in America, and that was years ago, when I had hair and body mass and my teeth were shiny.

Mark Zandi Quotes