President Biden on Friday declared the Equal Rights Amendment is now “the law of the land.”

President Joe Biden: “Today, I affirm the Equal Rights Amendment to have cleared all the necessary hurdles to be added to the U.S. Constitution now. The Equal Rights Amendment is the law of the land now. It’s the 28th Amendment to the Constitution now!”

The announcement drew celebration — and confusion. A White House official clarified Biden’s statements represented his opinion that the ERA was ratified, though never codified in the Constitution, but that he was not issuing any sort of accompanying executive action. Advocates say Biden could have taken a further step and ordered the National Archives to publish the amendment and enter it officially in the Constitution, a move which would have triggered a legal battle with Republicans.