WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker John Boehner said Tuesday that he's not confident Congress can reach a budget deal and avoid a downgrading of the U.S. debt rating.

Moody's Investors Service said Tuesday that it would likely cut its "Aaa" rating on U.S. government debt, probably by one notch, if budget negotiations fail.

Boehner was asked at a Capitol Hill news conference how confident he was that negotiations would prevent the government from hitting the so-called fiscal cliff — an economy rattling set of across-the-board spending cuts and higher taxes caused by the expiration of Bush-era tax cuts that are set to hit in January.

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