Obama, Geithner Optimistic on Budget Deal

President Barack Obama and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner expressed confidence that Washington would solve its budget problems, seeking to tamp down concern over a credit-rating report that questioned the country's long-term fiscal health.

Their efforts came after Standard & Poor's for the first time lowered its outlook on U.S. government debt from "stable" to "negative." The firm shook Wall Street and Washington Monday when it warned it could downgrade the government's top-notch AAA debt rating if the White House and Congress can't reach a credible plan to rein in federal budget deficits by 2013.