The last time there was a debate over the debt ceiling, in July of 2011, Standard & Poor's downgraded the U.S. credit rating for the first time in its history, taking it from a AAA to an AA+ and throwing the markets in turmoil. At that time, Moody's and Fitch retained a rating of AAA. Earlier in October, Moody's said that the current debt ceiling debate is less dire than that of 2011 and said that the U.S. creditworthiness would not be at risk this time around. Fitch, however, clearly disagrees.