Biden Says He Has 14th Amendment Authority on Debt Ceiling — Treasury Sec. Yellen Shuts Him Down
“I think we have the authority,” Joe Biden says.
Joe Biden claimed he has the authority to unilaterally raise the debt ceiling using the 14th Amendment — but his Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen quickly dismissed his assertion.
“I’m looking at the 14th Amendment as to whether or not we have the authority — I think we have the authority,” Biden told reporters at a press conference in Hiroshima, Japan on Sunday.
“The question is, could it be done and invoked in time that it would not be appealed, and as a consequence past the date in question and still default on the debt. That is a question that I think is unresolved.”
But Treasury Secretary Yellen shot down Biden’s claim on MSNBC, stating that the 14th Amendment can’t be used to raise the debt ceiling.
“Does the 14th Amendment fall under the category of extraordinary measures?” Meet the Press host Chuck Todd asked.
Yellen replied, “Well, extraordinary measures is used in a different way, but there hasn’t been much discussion of the 14th Amendment, and as President Biden said, I believe this morning, it doesn’t seem like something that could be appropriately used in these circumstances given the legal uncertainty around it and given the tight timeframe we’re on. So my devout hope is that Congress will raise the debt ceiling and we will pay all of our bills.”
As constitutional scholar Jonathon Turley noted Saturday in response to calls by Democrat lawmakers for Biden to raise the debt ceiling, only Congress has the authority to borrow or spend trillions of dollars, not the executive branch.
Their argument for it is based on Section 4 of the 14th Amendment, which states, “The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned.”
The drafters of this amendment did not want Congress to simply dismiss its obligations to pay off the Union’s debts from the Civil War. Although the amendment is not limited to those debts, it has nothing to do with debt ceilings set by Congress. Default, after all, is not a denial of the validity of debt, but rather a refusal or failure to pay debts in time despite their validity.
Meanwhile, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) claimed Sunday that negotiations with the Biden regime over the debt ceiling are going nowhere.
“Just got off the phone with the president while he’s out of the country. My position has not changed. Washington cannot continue to spend money we do not have at the expense of children and grandchildren. Tomorrow, he and I will meet in person to continue negotiations,” he tweeted.
Just got off the phone with the president while he’s out of the country.
My position has not changed. Washington cannot continue to spend money we do not have at the expense of children and grandchildren.
Tomorrow, he and I will meet in person to continue negotiations.
— Kevin McCarthy (@SpeakerMcCarthy) May 21, 2023
