Republican happy with shutdown as U.S. veers toward downgrade

Florida Congressman Ted Yoho is part of the conservative voting bloc that pushed the government into a shutdown last week.

And he doesn’t regret doing it, reports the Washington Post.

A veterinarian until last year, Yoho says his goal is to put the brakes on government spending, and what he sees as the government’s race towards socialism.

He says conservatives “are like Fred and Barney in the Flintstone-mobile,” stopping the car before it’s too late, the Post reports.

Read: Surprising casualties of the U.S. shutdown

A number of constituents have written or called him to express support, including one senior citizen who wrote, “Way to go, tiger.”

He’s also gotten some colourful hate mail.

The government shutdown is just the beginning, says Yoho. He’ll vote against raising the debt ceiling too. Read more about Yoho here.

U.S. credit rating under review

Toronto ratings company DBRS has put America’s triple-A credit rating on review, “with negative implications,” Bloomberg reports.

The potential for the U.S. to default on its loans when it hits its $16.7 trillion debt limit—which it is expected to reach next week—sparked the move, says Bloomberg.

The U.S. government shutdown is also into its second week.