Don't mint the coin.

• Author: Carney, John
• Position: List - Brief article

Could a trillion dollar platinum coin be minted by the administration in order to pay down federal m debts--and avoid a debt limit m showdown? As another debt ceiling fight approached in January, some economists and bloggers argued % it could. But there were questions about its legality. CNBC Senior Editor John Carney offers three reasons why the coin trick wouldn't work.

1 It's Congress's job. The Constitution assigns the financing of government to Congress. This is includes the power to coin and regulate the value of money. The Executive Branch cannot grab this power just because it doesn't like the way Congress is handling the debt ceiling.

2 Congress can't give Treasury that much power. While Congress can delegate to agencies, there are limits. Congress must supply an...