On May 16, 2025, the international rating agency Moody's Ratings, for the first time in more than a century, stripped the United States of its highest credit rating, Aaa, downgrading it to Aa1 and changing the outlook from "negative" to "stable." This was reported by Reuters, Bloomberg and CNN, emphasizing that the decision was caused by concerns about the rapid growth of the US national debt, which has reached $36,2 trillion, and the authorities' inability to reduce the budget deficit. This made Moody's the last of the three major rating agencies to abandon the highest assessment of the US creditworthiness: Standard & Poor's downgraded the rating to AA+ in 2011, and Fitch Ratings in August 2023. The rating downgrade, as noted by the Financial Times, could increase volatility in financial markets, increase the yield on government bonds and increase the cost of borrowing for the government and citizens.

Moody's based its decision on the persistent growth of federal debt and interest payments, which significantly exceed those of other countries with comparable ratings. The agency forecasts that by 2035, the U.S. debt will reach 134% of GDP, up from 98% in 2024, and the budget deficit will grow from 6,4% to almost 9% of GDP. Key factors include increased spending on social programs such as Medicare and Social Security, rising interest payments, which already exceed $1 trillion per year, and low government revenue. An extension of the 2017 Tax Cut Act, initiated by Donald Trump, could add $4 trillion to the deficit over the decade, Moody's warns. Political polarization and the lack of consensus in Congress on deficit reduction also played a role in the agency's decision.

The downgrade coincided with the failure of Trump's tax bill, which failed to pass a procedural vote in Congress on May 16 amid resistance from Republicans who demanded spending cuts. The bill would have extended the 2017 tax cuts, which analysts estimate would have added trillions of dollars to the debt. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called Moody's decision "a signal to Trump to stop his irresponsible tax policies," while Trump supporters, including former adviser Stephen Moore, accused the agency of political bias, calling the decision "outrageous."