Concerning the 14th amendment, section 4, outside of case law interpretations, but staying strictly with the text,
The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law,
What does "authorized by law" mean?
Who determines whether debt incurred by the United States through, say, Treasury, is "authorized by law"?
Which branch determines whether debt incurred is authorized by law?Who is this authority which determines "validity"? Does such authority also have the responsibility of execution, that is, to pay debt? By pay authorization, I don't mean who signs the checks.
I'm a physicist so I have limited knowledge to answer these questions when groping in these murky waters. In physics, we try to make things absolutely clear through the language of mathematics. In contrast, there's no rigor in common language. So maybe some of you law dogs can help here. |
