Biden: ‘I Would Be Blameless’ If Debt Ceiling Defaults

President Joe Biden recently said he bears no responsibility if the U.S. defaults on its debt in the foreseeable future.

Biden made the remarks during a press appearance in Hiroshima, Japan, where he traveled for the G7 summit. Despite the White House insisting there would be no debate on the matter, Republicans in Congress have forced Biden to negotiate.

Biden’s latest argument was that some “MAGA Republicans” are trying to start a default to destroy the economy before his re-election bid.

“I’ve done my part,” Biden said, adding that “it’s time for the other side to move their team positions because much of what they were proposed is simply quite frankly, unacceptable.”

Fox News White House correspondent Peter Doocy asked Biden if people would blame him for a “breach” of the debt limit.

“Of course no one will blame me, I know you won’t, you’ll be saying Biden did a wonderful job,” Biden said jokingly.

“Would you be blameless in a default situation?” Doocy asked.

“On the merits, based on what I’ve offered, I would be blameless,” Biden said in response. “On the politics of it, no one would be blameless. And by the way, that’s one of the, one of the things some [people] are contemplating.”

“Well, I gotta be careful here. I think there are some MAGA Republicans in the House who know the damage that it would do to the economy and because I am president, and presidents are responsible for everything, Biden would take the blame,” Biden added. “And that’s the one way to make sure Biden’s not re-elected.”

According to legal experts, Biden’s argument that the 14th Amendment gives him the right to raise the debt ceiling is unlikely to hold up in court. Despite Biden acknowledging that such a legal challenge would make his actions useless, he claimed that the appeals process would significantly delay a ruling’s date.

A GOP source said that the “discretionary” side of the ledger, or the spending portion that Congress annually controls through the appropriations process, is where Republicans would like to make their cuts.

“A responsible, bipartisan budget agreement remains possible if both sides negotiate in good faith and recognize that neither side will get everything it wants,” a White House spokesperson recently said.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) has criticized Biden for “scaremongering” about the national debt and claimed that the president is “willing to tank the economy” instead of negotiating with Republicans. Cruz called Biden’s approach to the presidency “unfortunate,” arguing that he should be “working out a deal” with Republicans on the debt ceiling.