Moody’s decision to join other major ratings agencies in downgrading the U.S.’s once-pristine credit rating could have a tangible impact on Americans’ wallets. The agency has dropped the U.S. sovereign credit rating—an assessment of the country’s ability to pay its debts—down one level from the highest possible Aaa to Aa1.

Decades of excessive spending by Congress has caused Moody's to lower America's credit rating. We'll look at federal revenue and spending over the past 59 years.