Yellen calls invoking 14th Amendment a ‘constitutional crisis’

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Sunday called the possibility of invoking the 14th Amendment a “constitutional crisis” after President Biden left open such an option amid stalled debt ceiling talks.

During an appearance on ABC’s “This Week,” anchor George Stephanopoulos repeatedly asked Yellen about whether Biden invoking the 14th Amendment — in which he could continue issuing debt without raising the limit on borrowing — was on the table. She largely sidestepped the questions and laid the responsibility on Congress but alluded to the option as a dire choice.

When asked to respond to Biden saying he was not yet ready to invoke the 14th Amendment, Yellen said, “Our priority is to make sure that Congress does its job.”

“There is no way to protect our financial system in our economy, other than Congress doing its job and raising the debt ceiling and enabling us to pay our bills and 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,” she said. 

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More debt ceiling coverage from The Hill:

• Pressure grows on Biden to bend in debt ceiling talks
• Debt limit battle: How we got here
• 14th Amendment talk on debt limit viewed with extreme caution by Team Biden

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Stephanopoulos continued to press Yellen on the issue, asking if invoking the amendment was on the table if an agreement between Biden and Congress isn’t reached. Yellen responded there was nothing the president could do to avoid an “economic catastrophe” using the mechanism even though invoking the 14th Amendment would be a choice for Biden.

“I’m still not exactly clear on whether it’s on the table or off the table,” Stephanopoulos asked. “Is it a break glass in case of emergency option?”

“Look, I don’t I don’t want to consider emergency options. What’s important is that members of Congress recognize what their responsibility is, and avert what will surely be, regardless of how it’s handled, what option is used to handle it … an economic and financial catastrophe,” Yellen said. 

“It sounds like you’re saying you don’t want to but you may have to,” Stephanopoulos asked. 

“Well … what to do if Congress fails to meet its responsibility, there is simply no good options. And the ones that you’ve listed are among the not good options,” Yellen replied. 

Biden said in an interview that aired Friday that he’s not ready to invoke the 14th Amendment, leaving the option on the table ahead of a meeting he has this week with congressional leaders on the matter.

“I’ve not gotten there yet,” Biden told MSNBC host Stephanie Ruhle.

–– Updated at 10:41 a.m.