Biden affirms Equal Rights Amendment is part of Constitution

President Biden asserted the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex, is part of the Constitution, arguing Friday it had met the criteria to be added as the 28th Amendment.

Biden in a statement said the ERA "is the law of the land" because it was passed by a two-thirds majority in Congress, and three-quarters of the states have ratified it. But he stopped short of instructing the archivist to add the amendment to the Constitution, making it unclear what effect the outgoing president's statement will have and likely inviting legal challenges.

“The American Bar Association (ABA) has recognized that the Equal Rights Amendment has cleared all necessary hurdles to be formally added to the Constitution as the 28th Amendment,” Biden said. “I agree with the ABA and with leading legal constitutional scholars that the Equal Rights Amendment has become part of our Constitution."

“It is long past time to recognize the will of the American people,” he added. “In keeping with my oath and duty to Constitution and country, I affirm what I believe and what three-fourths of the states have ratified: the 28th Amendment is the law of the land, guaranteeing all Americans equal rights and protections under the law regardless of their sex.”

A senior administration official said Biden was not going to direct the archivist to add it to the Constitution. The official said the archivist’s role was “purely ministerial” and that she is “required to publish an amendment once it has been effectively ratified.”

Congress approved the ERA in 1972. The congressional approval came with a seven-year deadline for states to sign onto the law as a constitutional amendment, but it wasn’t until 2020 that Virginia became the 38th state to ratify it.

The decades-long delay is likely to be the subject of any legal challenge from opponents, though the Constitution does not make any reference to a deadline for states to ratify an amendment.

The first Trump administration's Justice Department issued an opinion in January 2020 saying no action should be taken to add the ERA to the Constitution, citing the lapsed deadline.

Biden's announcement comes just days before he is set to leave office, with President-elect Trump returning for a second term.

Democratic lawmakers and advocates have for weeks urged Biden to take action on the amendment before leaving office. More than 120 House Democrats, led by former Rep. Cori Bush (Mo.) and Rep. Ayanna Pressley (Mass.), wrote a letter to the president in December calling on him to recognize it as a constitutional amendment.

The New York Times reported that Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) has also been lobbying Biden to affirm the ERA, arguing it would be a way to enshrine abortion rights after the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade in 2022.

Topics

Goodbye, Joe: Biden's Legacy (Part 1)

How will he be remembered on the world stage?
BBC News - 1d
Biden Says Equal Rights Amendment Has Passed, but Does Not Force Certification

President Biden’s remarks were largely a symbolic gesture of support for a century-long campaign to enshrine gender equality into the Constitution. But advocates said they could add heft to a ...
The New York Times - 5h
Biden says the Equal Rights Amendment is ‘the law of the land.’ What is it, and what happens next?

President Joe Biden’s symbolic declaration on Friday that the Equal Rights Amendment is “the law of the land” likely only sets up more debates for Congress and the courts over the constitutional ...
NBC News - 5h
Protect your constitutional rights: Don’t fall for the Laken Riley Act’s security theater

The due process clauses of the Constitution are written in general terms: they apply to all people, in the land of the free.
The Hill - 1d
Biden calls for constitutional amendment on presidential immunity

President Biden on Wednesday said there should be an amendment to the Constitution that makes clear presidents are not immune from crimes committed in office, using his farewell address in part to ...
The Hill - 1d
A Key Part of Biden’s Climate Law Was Built to Survive Trump. Now, the Test.

A lucrative tax credit for renewable energy could be hard to kill because it applies to a technologies favored by Republicans, not just wind and solar.
The New York Times - Jan. 7
‘The Interview’: Antony Blinken Insists He and Biden Made the Right Calls

At the end of a tenure marked by war and division, the outgoing secretary of state defends his legacy on Gaza and Ukraine and says he’s made America stronger.
The New York Times - Jan. 4
Johnson on homeland security: Biden admin didn't prioritize 'the right things'

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) criticized President Biden's administration's handling of homeland security following the deadly New Orleans truck attack, arguing they did not prioritize “the right ...
The Hill - Jan. 3
Equal Rights Amendment advocates should take ‘dead’ for an answer

ERA advocates are attempting to revive the 1972 ERA by having President Biden order the archivist to certify it as part of the Constitution, but the Supreme Court and lower courts have ruled that ...
The Hill - Jan. 1