Rep. Waxman: Credit rating agencies a 'colossal failure'

In a hearing on the role of credit rating agencies in the current financial crisis, Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., said the "story of the credit rating agencies is a story of colossal failure."

The Oct. 22 hearing of the House's Committee on Oversight and Government Reform addressed the role of McGraw-Hill Cos. Inc.'s Standard & Poor's Ratings Services, Moody's Corp. and Fitch Ratings.

Committee Chairman Waxman said in his opening remarks that the rating agencies broke a "bond of trust," while federal regulators "ignored the warning signs and did...