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 Good morning. Here's the news: 1. US Stock index futures are down this morning, pointing to further declines in equities, as Standard & Poor's decision to cut America's AAA credit rating rattled already rattled investors. 2. A massive bond repurchase program by the ECB failed to calm European markets. Traders are skeptical that eurozone policy-makers can contain the multiple sovereign debt crises within the European Union. 3. Nouriel Roubini writes: "The misguided decision by Standard & Poor’s to downgrade the US at a time of such severe market turmoil and economic weakness only increases the chances of a double dip and even larger fiscal deficits." 4. Paul Krugman excoriates Standard and Poor's for its decision to downgrade America's credit rating, calling it "the last place anyone should turn for judgments about our nation’s prospects." 5. Standard & Poor's says there is a one-in-three chance it will lower America's credit rating further over the course of the next two years. 6. The New York Times reports: "The downgrade of the United States government’s credit rating by Standard & Poor’s is almost sure to increase pressure on a new Congressional “supercommittee” to mute ideological disagreements and recommend a package of deficit-reduction measures far exceeding its original goal of at least $1.5 trillion, lawmakers said Sunday." 7. Riots broke out in London after the shooting of a black resident by police. The Washington Post reports: "Police were on high alert across the city after rioters set buildings and cars ablaze, looting and clashing with police in the downtrodden north London neighborhood of Tottenham on Saturday night. The violence was spreading to other pockets of the city Sunday..." 8. The Syrian military yesterday escalated its offensive to crush the popular uprising, reportedly killing scores of people as it sent tanks and troops to several locations, including the eastern city of Deir al-Zour, a hotbed of anti-regime sentiment. 9. The killing of 22 US Navy Seals in Afghanistan is a reminder, if one was needed, of just how perilous the country has become in recent years. Logar and Wardak provinces, gateways to Kabul, are treacherous at every turn. 10. The Response, a day of prayer and fasting at Houston's Reliant Stadium, drew more than 30,000 people and was widely viewed as a political success for Texas Governor Rick Perry, who is expected to announce his candidacy for the 2012 GOP presidential nomination later this month. 11. Jon Huntsman's father casts a long shadow across Utah. He is influential in the Mormon Church, in state and national politics and in the business community. Jon Huntsman Jr., now running for the 2012 GOP presidential nomination, struggles to be clear of his father's shadow. 12. The next major political event in the 2012 GOP presidential nomination campaign occurs this weekend in Ames, Iowa. The Iowa Republican Party will conduct a straw poll on Saturday that may well end Tim Pawlenty's presidential campaign. Please follow Politics on Twitter and Facebook. | 
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