S&P Raises State of Ohio's Credit Rating; Cites GOP Governor Kasich's Whining About His Predecessor and His Budget, But Mostly His Budget

By electing a fiscal conservative, Ohio is moving in the right direction when it comes to economic vibrancy.

Standard & Poor's Ratings Services upgraded Ohio's debt rating just one day after it put the United States on "creditwatch negative" on what it calls a rising risk of policy stalemate in the debt limit negotiations.

For Ohio, the rating was revised from "negative" to "stable" after Gov. John Kasich signed a new budget the ratings agency says will essentially balance the state's finances for the next two years. S&P also said Ohio is experiencing a modest economic recovery which has stabilized revenue.

In making the upgrade, the agency also assigned a "AA+" long-term rating to Ohio's $416.75 million general obligation bonds... "After a significant decline through the recession, Ohio's economy is steadily recovering," according to S&P's statement issued Friday.

The agency listed factors such as Ohio's unemployment rate has stabilized and fallen to 8.6 percent through May 2011 from a peak of 11 percent in March 2010. The also state experienced positive employment growth in 2010 and through the first quarter of 2011...

In S&P's statement Thursday about the U.S., it said it placed its 'AAA' long-term and 'A-1+' short-term sovereign credit ratings on "CreditWatch with negative implications."

The action means there is a "substantial likelihood of it taking a rating action within the next 90 days." ...

Unlike President Obama, Kasich actually took proactive steps to reduce the size of Ohio's government and improve business conditions for the private sector. Plus he didn't blame his predecessor, demonize his political opponents, or say "I" and "me" all the time.


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