President Biden’s routine posturing on the debt ceiling, for more than 100 days, has shoved America closer and closer to the edge of the cliff – we are mere inches away from default. As the clock ticks towards June 1^st, what is now referred to as the “X date”, a new narrative has sprung from the bowels of the White House, and it’s centered on the President having the authority to invoke the 14^th Amendment to the Constitution to avert our nation from stumbling into a default. This narrative has been parroted by the mainstream media as well as the far-left faction of the President’s own party. Make no mistake, if the President were to invoke the 14th Amendment, a constitutional and economic crisis, the likes of which we have never seen before, would engulf the nation.

When the President references his potential invoking of the 14^th Amendment, he’s pointing to a specific section, Section Four to be exact, which states that the “validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law…shall not be questioned.” What the President is claiming is that he has the authority to issue new debt and he can bypass Congress in doing so. He does not have such authority – not in his wildest dreams. That power lies within Congress’ domain – as outlined in Article I of the Constitution. The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board published a recent op-ed, “What the 14^th Amendment Really Says” that provides a pointed, factual analysis that’s well worth a read.

Ilya Shapiro, a Senior Fellow, and Director of Constitutional Studies at the Manhattan Institute sums this scenario up succinctly, “A constitutional provision that prevents repudiation of debt doesn’t also somehow authorize limitless new debt. That’s it. No amount of squinting and flim-flammery can change that basic point.” Even Jay Carney, the former White House spokesperson under former President Obama articulated in 2013 that, “We just don’t believe that [the 14th Amendment] provides the authority that some believe it does” and “Congress has the responsibility and the sole authority to raise the debt ceiling.”

Here's the bottom line: I’m an original cosponsor of the Limit, Save Grow Act – a bill House Republicans passed to address the debt ceiling and implement commonsense spending reforms to limit wasteful spending, save taxpayer dollars, and grow the economy. If President Biden wants to prevent a default on our nation’s debt, he should negotiate in good faith with Republicans instead of threatening to go down a path that will surely lead to both constitutional and economic ruin. He would do well to choose the former.

My Latest Op-Ed

The Department of Agriculture’s recently proposed revisions to school meal patterns will impose unrealistic and costly regulatory requirements on school districts – only adding to the to the hurdles schools currently face. Ensuring students have nutritious and fulfilling meals starts at the local level, not with out-of-touch federal regulation. Recently, Senator John Boozman (R-AR) joined me in writing an op-ed that makes the case for why school nutrition professionals, not Washington bureaucrats, should be the ones making decisions about the contents of school meals. Simply put, school foodservice providers and nutritionists deserve a stronger voice than Beltway “experts”.

To read our full op-ed in K-12 Dive, click here.

The Thin Blue Line

Last week, during National Police Week, House Republicans passed three important pieces of legislation – H.R. 3091, H.R. 2494, and H.Con.Res.40 – to support the men and women who proudly serve as the thin blue line. Unfortunately, when it came time for our colleagues across the aisle to join us in supporting law enforcement, the vast majority voted against all three pieces of legislation. Their decision to do so was very disappointing. Whether on television, over the radio, or even within the folds of the newspapers we read every day, we continue to come across stories of attacks on these public servants and the dangerous effects of the shameful “defund the police” mantra of the far left. You can always rest assured that I will continue to stand up and push back against the outrageous attempts to undercut the men and women of law enforcement – they always deserve our full and unwavering support. 

Quote of The Week

“There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn't true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true.”

­-Søren Kierkegaard

Have a blessed weekend,