Standard and Poor's says that the Obama Administration has filed a multi billion lawsuit as retaliation for the US credit downgrade in 2011. Tax Cheat Timmy Geithner told McGraw Hill Financial Inc. Chairman Harold W. McGraw III in 2011 that Standard & Poor's downgrade of the U.S. debt would be met by a response. S&P; filed a declaration by McGraw yesterday in federal court in Santa Ana, California, as part of a request to force the U.S. to hand over potential evidence that the company says will support its claim that the government filed a fraud lawsuit against it last year in retaliation for its downgrade of the U.S. debt two years earlier. In his court statement, McGraw, 65, said Geithner called him on Aug. 8, 2011, after S&P; was the only credit ratings company to downgrade the U.S. debt. Geithner, McGraw said, told him that S&P; would be held accountable for the downgrade. Government officials have said the downgrade was based on an error by S&P.; "S&P;'s conduct would be looked at very carefully," Geithner told McGraw according to the filing. "Such behavior would not occur, he said, without a response from the government."

• published: 22 Jan 2014
• views: 27