"Screwed" actually wasn't the exact word that was used. Christine Romer, Obama's first chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, described the post-downgrade situation to Bill Maher:
Only hours after Standard & Poor's downgraded the credit worthiness of the U.S. for the first time in history, a former Obama economic adviser summarized the situation in a colorful way.
The U.S. is "pretty darn fu**ed," said Christine Romer, President Obama's first chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers.
Appearing on HBO's "Real Time with Bill Maher", Ms. Romer was asked about what the downgrade means for the U.S. economy. Romer's profanity followed a clip for a segment on Maher's show called "How F***** Are We?"
An amused Maher paused to let the audience enjoy what Romer had said. After all, it's not everyday that a professor and former White House staffer swears on live cable.
"I've been hanging around Tim Geithner too long," Romer added, obviously trying to milk the moment.