AUDIT THE FED
From: Politico 4/20/09
A few weeks ago, the Federal Reserve responded to the American people’s increased concerns over our monetary policy by presenting new initiatives aimed at enhancing the Fed’s transparency and accountability.
As someone who has called for more openness from the Fed for more than 30 years, I was pleased to see the Fed acknowledge the legitimacy of this need.
The Federal Reserve controls the flow of money and credit in our economy because Congress has abdicated its responsibility over the nation’s currency. This process therefore occurs centrally and almost completely outside the system of checks and balances. Because of legal tender laws, people are left with no real choice, except to build their lives and futures around this monopoly currency, vulnerable to powerful central bankers.
The Founding Fathers intended for only gold and silver to be used as currency. However, inch by inch over the decades, this country has backed away from this important restraint. Our money today has no link whatsoever to gold or silver. This is extremely dangerous for many reasons, and it has a lot to do with the boom and bust cycles that have resulted in the crisis in which we find ourselves today.
The Fed is now pledging to reveal to the public more about its economic predictions; it calls this greater transparency. This is little more than window dressing at best, and it’s utterly useless at worst. Many analysts, especially those familiar with the Austrian School of economics, saw the current economic crisis coming years ago, when the Federal Reserve was still telling the American people their policies were as good as gold. So while it might be nice to know what fantasy-infused outlook the Fed has on the economy, I am much more interested in what it is doing as a result of its faulty, haphazard interpretation of data.
There is a statute in place that allows audits of the Federal Reserve; however, the most crucial activities of the Fed are specifically exempted. I seek to remove these exemptions to get a clearer picture of what is going on with our monetary system. For instance, what arrangements does it have with other foreign central banks? What the Fed does on that front could very well affect or undermine foreign policy — even contribute to starting a war. We also need to know the source and destination of funds provided through the Fed’s emergency funding facilities. This information will provide a more accurate and complete picture of the true cost of these endless bailouts and spending packages and could very likely affect the decisions being made in Congress.
But with so much of the Fed’s business cloaked in secrecy, these latest initiatives will not even scratch the surface of the Fed’s opaque operations. People are demanding answers and explanations for our economic malaise, and we should settle for nothing less than the whole truth on monetary policy.
The first step is to pass legislation I have introduced, H.R. 1207, which requires a full audit of the Federal Reserve. The good news is that 55 of my colleagues, with several more pending, have already signed on as co-sponsors, indicating a willingness to learn the truth. There is also a companion bill in the Senate, S. 604, sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). If this audit reveals what I suspect and Congress has finally had enough, it can also pass my legislation to abolish the Federal Reserve and put control of the economy’s lifeblood, the currency, back where it constitutionally belongs.
If Congress refuses to do these things, the very least it could do is to repeal legal tender laws and allow people to choose different types of currency in which to operate, ones not subject to the whims of central bankers or the devastating erosion of inflation. If the Fed refuses to open its books to an audit, and Congress refuses to demand this, the people’s economic interests should not be held hostage by this secretive and incompetent organization.
Rep. Ron Paul, a Republican, represents the 14th Congressional District of Texas.
As someone who has called for more openness from the Fed for more than 30 years, I was pleased to see the Fed acknowledge the legitimacy of this need.
The Federal Reserve controls the flow of money and credit in our economy because Congress has abdicated its responsibility over the nation’s currency. This process therefore occurs centrally and almost completely outside the system of checks and balances. Because of legal tender laws, people are left with no real choice, except to build their lives and futures around this monopoly currency, vulnerable to powerful central bankers.
The Founding Fathers intended for only gold and silver to be used as currency. However, inch by inch over the decades, this country has backed away from this important restraint. Our money today has no link whatsoever to gold or silver. This is extremely dangerous for many reasons, and it has a lot to do with the boom and bust cycles that have resulted in the crisis in which we find ourselves today.
The Fed is now pledging to reveal to the public more about its economic predictions; it calls this greater transparency. This is little more than window dressing at best, and it’s utterly useless at worst. Many analysts, especially those familiar with the Austrian School of economics, saw the current economic crisis coming years ago, when the Federal Reserve was still telling the American people their policies were as good as gold. So while it might be nice to know what fantasy-infused outlook the Fed has on the economy, I am much more interested in what it is doing as a result of its faulty, haphazard interpretation of data.
There is a statute in place that allows audits of the Federal Reserve; however, the most crucial activities of the Fed are specifically exempted. I seek to remove these exemptions to get a clearer picture of what is going on with our monetary system. For instance, what arrangements does it have with other foreign central banks? What the Fed does on that front could very well affect or undermine foreign policy — even contribute to starting a war. We also need to know the source and destination of funds provided through the Fed’s emergency funding facilities. This information will provide a more accurate and complete picture of the true cost of these endless bailouts and spending packages and could very likely affect the decisions being made in Congress.
But with so much of the Fed’s business cloaked in secrecy, these latest initiatives will not even scratch the surface of the Fed’s opaque operations. People are demanding answers and explanations for our economic malaise, and we should settle for nothing less than the whole truth on monetary policy.
The first step is to pass legislation I have introduced, H.R. 1207, which requires a full audit of the Federal Reserve. The good news is that 55 of my colleagues, with several more pending, have already signed on as co-sponsors, indicating a willingness to learn the truth. There is also a companion bill in the Senate, S. 604, sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). If this audit reveals what I suspect and Congress has finally had enough, it can also pass my legislation to abolish the Federal Reserve and put control of the economy’s lifeblood, the currency, back where it constitutionally belongs.
If Congress refuses to do these things, the very least it could do is to repeal legal tender laws and allow people to choose different types of currency in which to operate, ones not subject to the whims of central bankers or the devastating erosion of inflation. If the Fed refuses to open its books to an audit, and Congress refuses to demand this, the people’s economic interests should not be held hostage by this secretive and incompetent organization.
Rep. Ron Paul, a Republican, represents the 14th Congressional District of Texas.
May 5, 2009
Dear Friend of Liberty,
With each passing day, Ron Paul is winning people over to the cause of Federal Reserve transparency and sound money.
More and more Congressmen have been signing onto Dr. Paul’s Audit the Fed bill, HR 1207, and it is now up to a whopping 124 cosponsors.
That cosponsor list now includes over half of the House Republican Caucus. Dr. Paul is truly leading the GOP back to its roots of sound money and fiscal conservatism.
In fact, The Washington Independent’s David Weigel just wrote an important article about how Ron Paul’s message is resonating with Republican lawmakers. All I can say is, "It's about time!"
Dear Friend of Liberty,
With each passing day, Ron Paul is winning people over to the cause of Federal Reserve transparency and sound money.
More and more Congressmen have been signing onto Dr. Paul’s Audit the Fed bill, HR 1207, and it is now up to a whopping 124 cosponsors.
That cosponsor list now includes over half of the House Republican Caucus. Dr. Paul is truly leading the GOP back to its roots of sound money and fiscal conservatism.
In fact, The Washington Independent’s David Weigel just wrote an important article about how Ron Paul’s message is resonating with Republican lawmakers. All I can say is, "It's about time!"
Click here to read the article -- “Ron Paul's Economic Theories Winning GOP Converts”.
And today, Dr. Paul proved the case for Federal Reserve transparency to people across America by grilling Ben Bernanke on national television.
And today, Dr. Paul proved the case for Federal Reserve transparency to people across America by grilling Ben Bernanke on national television.
Chairman Ben is running scared now that HR 1207 is gaining steam. He even tried to appease Dr. Paul by offering transparency on everything except monetary policy -- the Fed's sole function!
It is clear we are winning this fight, and I believe that ultimately we will see it through to victory. But this is no time to rest on our laurels.
Keep writing and calling your congressman if he has not already cosponsored HR 1207 (click here to find out). Circulate more petitions and Audit the Fed literature to your friends and neighbors to recruit them to this winning effort.
Thank you for all you have done and all you will do. With your continued support, Ron Paul and Campaign for Liberty will return the GOP to its conservative roots, and America back to its founding principles.
In Liberty,
John Tate
President, Campaign for Liberty
