Willie R. Tubbs, FISM News
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The federal government is set to run out of money next month, according to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who spent Sunday warning that there were “no good options” if Congress stagnates or otherwise fails to pass a bill raising the debt ceiling.
She said that projections show the U.S. could default on its loans as early as June 1.
“Whether it’s defaulting on interest payments that are due on the debt or payments for Social Security recipients or to Medicare providers, we would simply not have enough cash to meet all of our obligations,” Yellen said during an appearance on ABC. “And it’s widely agreed that financial and economic chaos would ensue.”
Part of that chaos could entail a novel Constitutional matter.
Voices on the left, in the White House, and also at ABC, have wondered if President Biden can raise the debt ceiling on his own using the authority of the 14th Amendment, which reads in part that 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.”
Such a move, which would involve Biden effectively declaring that Congress has no right to impose a debt ceiling on the federal budget, would be a first and lead directly to a federal courthouse. Legal scholars point out that only Congress has the authority to enact the provision, and any attempt by the president to usurp legislative authority would be unconstitutional.
However, Yellen refused to avow that Biden would not use the 14th Amendment as an option in the debt limit standoff, implying that it could be used as an “emergency option.”
“We should not get to the point where we need to consider whether the president can go on issuing debt. This would be a constitutional crisis,” Yellen said.
Pressed by @GStephanopoulos about possibility of Pres. Biden invoking the 14th Amendment amid debt standoff, Treasury Sec. Janet Yellen says, “What to do if Congress fails to meet its responsibility—there is simply no good options.” https://t.co/KInxWHwCkT pic.twitter.com/2Rat8m8gLy
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) May 7, 2023
Biden on Friday indicated that had not reached the point where he would be willing to try the judicial end-around but did not completely take the option off the table.
His predecessor, Barack Obama, had considered invoking the 14th Amendment to shortcut a debt showdown in 2011 but ultimately decided against the strategy.