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Fitch, the credit ratings firm, woke up and chose violence today. Plus: all the food and beverage news fit for human consumption. Let's get into it.

By Allison Morrow

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Last updated August 1 at 7:54 PM ET

📉 DOWNGRADED

Today was, to paraphrase my colleague Luciana Lopez, historic for the United States for all the wrong reasons.

ICYMI: Just as news of yet another indictment against former President Donald Trump was being handed up by a grand jury, Fitch Ratings announced that it was downgrading US debt, citing "a steady deterioration" in the standards of governance over the past two decades, including repeated impasses over the debt ceiling.

(And since all of that happened as Nightcap was just about to be wrapped for the evening, I take the timing as a personal attack on my wellbeing.)

Anyway, if you want to know more about the four new charges against Trump in the investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 election, let me direct you to my colleagues' live updates, here.

For the Fitch fiasco, you've come to the right place.

In short: Fitch Ratings, one of the Big Three ratings firms along with Moody's and S&P, downgraded its assessment of US sovereign debt from its top-notch "AAA" to one notch below that, "AA+"

That's a big deal. The last time US debt got downgraded was 2011, when lawmakers in Congress drove negotiations on the debt ceiling to the edge of a cliff. Even though the US didn't default, the threat of it was enough to prompt a credit downgrade from S&P, sparking a stock-market selloff that took months to recover from.

Fitch appears to be concerned about overall Washington dysfunction, including yet another near-miss on US default this past spring. It cited "the expected fiscal deterioration over the next three years," the federal government's high debt burden, and the "erosion of governance" compared with other AAA-rated countries.

But economists and Biden administration officials immediately criticized the decision, noting — not unfairly — the continued resilience of the US economy and an odd mishmash of old data Fitch appears to be relying on.

To wit:

"This is completely absurd," tweeted economist Jason Furman.
"I am very puzzled by many aspects of this announcement, as well as by the timing ... Overall, this announcement is much more likely to be dismissed than have a lasting disruptive impact on the US economy and markets," wrote Mohamed El-Erian.
Calling the decision "off base," Mark Zandi wrote: "Ask global investors whose bonds they would rather own if push comes to shove in the global economy - it's those of the U.S. Treasury."
"It doesn't make sense even on their own stated criteria," wrote Paul Krugman. "There's surely a story behind this — but whatever it is, it's a story about Fitch, not about U.S. solvency."

Naturally, the Biden administration isn't happy with the news. Officials expressed exasperation, saying that the macroeconomic outlook described in Fitch's report is simply inconsistent with the consensus view in markets right now.

As of this writing, US markets were largely unfazed in after-hours trading.

My colleague Elisabeth Buchwald has more.

💼 NUMBER OF THE DAY

9.6 million

Another point for Team Soft Landing: The number of job openings in the US fell to 9.6 million — its lowest point in more than two years.

For comparison: In March 2022, there were more than 12 million open jobs.

Bottom line: It's yet sign that the economy is coming off its rapid boil.

🌮 FOOD NEWS

Time for another installment of the foodiest, business-iest dispatch around. Let's dig in...

🔔 BEEF OVER BEEF

You know how sometimes you buy something and it's not quite what you expected? Perhaps the feeling of disappointment prompts you to say something spontaneous and obviously facetious, like, "I'm going to sue the pants off [Offending Company Name] over this!" And then you shake your head and go about your day because you have stuff to do.

But on Monday, one hungry citizen took action. After a disappointing visit to Taco Bell, they filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against the company, accusing it of false advertising about the amount of beef and beans in its $5.49 Mexican Pizza. The lawsuit claims the real serving is half of the amount advertised, and includes photographic evidence of the Bell's "unfair and deceptive" tactics.

(I can picture courtroom drama clearly. "Your honor, just look at the photos," a haggard attorney shouts, waving a manila folder stuffed with glossy images in their hand. Jurors mumble, whispers zing like an electric current through the galley. A gavel slams — "order, order!" ...)

My colleague Ellie Stevens has more.

Speaking of American innovation:

Lunchables added some fresh fruit to their lineup of processed meats and cheeses, so now you'll be able to find them in the produce aisle.

🍻 CHEERS

Beer sales have been slipping for years, but Bud Light didn't help its brand when it bungled the messaging around a transphobic backlash to one of its social media partnerships. But it seems Bud's loss has been Coors' gain.

Molson Coors, brewer of Miller Lite and Coors Light, just reported its single best quarter of revenue since its 2005 merger. Combined US sales of its two flagship beers outsold Bud Light by 50%. A year ago, Bud Light sales were higher than Coors Light and Miller Lite sales combined.

Bud Light's owner, Anheuser Busch, reports earnings Thursday.

In other beer news:

Heineken posted a 9% drop in earnings for the first half of the year, citing lower demand from Asia.
Anchor Brewing, America's oldest craft brewer with 127 years in business, closed its taprooms for good on Sunday.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

👀 Lawmakers are investigating BlackRock and MSCI to determine whether they are investing Americans' savings in Chinese companies blacklisted by the US government for security and human rights issues.

📲 Meta began removing news content from Facebook and Instagram in Canada in response to legislation that requires tech companies to negotiate payments to news organizations for hosting their content.

🚘 General Motors is recalling almost 900 vehicles worldwide because the Takata-made air bag inflator may explode, potentially striking drivers and passengers with sharp metal fragments.

🎞 Warner Bros. apologized for "Barbenheimer" tweets that sparked criticism in Japan.

📱POST OF THE DAY

The only rating agency I really care about...