The Economist and Ron Paul on Auditing/Abolishing the Fed

Bill Flanigen | July 21, 2009

Ron Paul speaks with The Economist about his "antipathy toward the Fed," his self-education in Austrian economics, his 2008 Presidential campaign, the Brüno run-in, the political prospects for a Fed abolition proposal (terrible), and his "devotion to gold."

In the background: Dr. No's bill to allow Congress to audit the Fed (which now has more than 250 co-sponsors). The Economist interviewer calls the bill "potentially quite dangerous" because it "weakens the Fed's political independence." Listen to it yourself:

Via The American Conservative's "Post Right" blog.

Two weeks ago, Reason's Tim Cavanaugh blogged the death-by-procedure of a Senate-side proposal to audit the Fed.

Comments

Warty|7.21.09 @ 4:15PM|#

I love this new meme going around that the Fed is somehow independent. OK, dudes.

kilroy|7.21.09 @ 4:16PM|#

The other video won't shut up and this one doesn't care for Linux/FireFox. WTF?

anon for this one!|7.21.09 @ 4:39PM|#

No kidding. There's nothing worse than hearing Penn&Teller yakking in the background while you're watching porn in another window.

WOW!!!|7.21.09 @ 4:43PM|#

I am no Ron Paul disciple but this bill is pretty cool. However that Economist dude is a total douchebag. The warning at the end "this bill is dangeerous"...what a fucktard. The Keynsians are scared shitless of stuff like this and if his bill were to ever pass then the Fed would probably just cover up an real numbers for any audit.

|7.21.09 @ 4:47PM|#

The Economist's reporter interviews Paul for the first half of the segment, and then feels obliged to "interview" himself for the second half, to provide the proper "explanation" of why Paul's ideas are "dangerous".

Ron Paul must be doing something right: The Powers That Be feel it necessary to counter him in a leading forum, instead of just ignoring him.

+++++++++++++++

I love how every American individual and business can be audited by the government, except one: The privately held banking cartel that is the Federal Reserve. That small elite of individuals, who in 1913 were granted the monopoly power to create and distribute money to whomever they choose, operates in secret behind closed doors, obligating the rest of us to pay for their handouts to the politically well connected.

Most have to work to earn money.
A very few get to print it up in their basement.

|7.21.09 @ 5:06PM|#

his self-education in Austrian economics

This is like a someone who watched a few ER episodes trying to remove someone's appendix.

paulist|7.21.09 @ 5:12PM|#

reason sucks

and the economist too

|7.21.09 @ 5:13PM|#

This is like a someone who watched a few ER episodes trying to remove someone's appendix.

Boo! Hiss!

Most college degrees amount to proctored textbook-reading, and economics ain't surgical medicine.

|7.21.09 @ 5:50PM|#

The Fed should NOT be independent. As the congressionally appointed monetary monopolist, it should be accountable to congress. Why people find this heretical is beyond me.

If you want a truly independent bank, then let's abolish all the banking regulations, and let the Fed compete in a real marketplace.

Jacksonian|7.21.09 @ 5:53PM|#

Bring back specie circular!

kilroy|7.21.09 @ 6:18PM|#

Yo, fuck the Fed.

|7.21.09 @ 8:01PM|#

You go, Ron. Someday, we will kill that creature from jeckyll island.

|7.21.09 @ 10:57PM|#

So, let's make the Fed even more responsive to political tides. Somehow I don't think Uncle Miltie would buy off on that.

Sure everyone can be a billionaire - when the currency isn't even worth wiping your ass with it. A more politicized Fed? Be very fucking careful what you ask for.

|7.21.09 @ 11:13PM|#

Want real change? End the Fed.

I can't believe both Cato and Reason stand behind the Fed. Add these two to the list of SOCIALISTS that believe central planning works.

|7.21.09 @ 11:43PM|#

And FUCK all the gold-bugs tuning in here. I can respect most fetishes (as long as you don't rub my nose in it), but not that one.

|7.22.09 @ 2:20AM|#

RP for pres 2012

Michael|7.22.09 @ 8:21AM|#

@juris imprudent

Would you at least be in favor of making it legal for people to use gold as money if they want to?

|7.22.09 @ 9:12AM|#

Don't just end the Fed, distroy it! Sure printing money is not inflationary Ben!

Ron moss`|7.22.09 @ 10:26AM|#

Constitutionally,"Congress shall have power to coin money and regulate the value thereof" Only the people can Amend that. The supreme Court has ruled, "Congress cannot abdicate it's duty and delegate to another group" 1935. Jurisdiction begets Authority, IRS where do you get yours?
From the States soverienty?

|7.22.09 @ 10:36AM|#

How can you claim to be Libertarian and believe in freedom from government tyranny, yet put blind faith in a central bank that devalues our currency enslaving the people through this back door tax? I suppose you think Bush's tax cuts have caused the decline in the middle class too right? I guess you can find people spoon feeding themselves propaganda in all political parties...

|7.22.09 @ 12:51PM|#

Correct me if I am wrong. The Fed is just a consortim run by the eight biggest commercial banks.
If "the Fed" buys toxic assets from these member banks, how is this different than all the off-balance sheet debacles a la Enron, Tyco, Worldcom, etc?

|7.22.09 @ 6:35PM|#

Ron Paul is a wacko, and his followers are clueless. Who do you think will benefit from undermining the Fed's independence? You think Pelosi, Reid, and Obama are going to enact a Gold Standard?! Bahaaaaaaaa!. Do you really want Nancy Pelosi running monetary policy instead of Bernanke. Bernanke is the only grown up left in government. Leave him alone.

|7.22.09 @ 6:43PM|#

Watching Ron Paulers trying to understand monetary policy is like watching a bunch of kindergarteners trying to understand particle physics. Go buy an f'ing textbook on monetary economics and come back when you have finished it. Then maybe we can discuss this intelligently.

|7.22.09 @ 6:46PM|#

Hey, Bernanke is printing too much money. Let's fire him and let Nancy Pelosi decide how much to print! Yea, that'll work! Morons.

|7.22.09 @ 7:02PM|#

Even assuming the absolutely, positively, never-gonna-happen, Gold Standard was enacted, that would be as ignorant as cutting up all of your credit cards because you're too weak and spineless to stop your wife and kids from going to the Mall. Then when you have a genuine emergency you are helpless to do anything but let them die of starvation.

|7.23.09 @ 1:14AM|#

Even Putin warned us against socialism, they said it doesn't work! Thanks Ron Paul!!
The gold standard worked great until the crook Nixon took us off it. But you can't have endless spending and wars with a gold standard, oh my!
P.S. Jason is a troll!

David|7.23.09 @ 10:37AM|#

Hey Fed! If you are not guilty, then you have nothing to hide!

|7.25.09 @ 11:01PM|#

Jason, you are so smart and brilliant. Way smarter and more informed than the rest of us. you're so smart and intelligent that you don't even use intelligent arguments, you just insult people. That must be what really smart people do. I wish I were as smart as you. I'll probably have to read thousands of textbooks to become that smart though. Especially judging by the quality of the logic used in your cutting up the credit cards and then having to watch your family starve argument. So smart. Right up there with what i'd expect from Kindergartners arguing about particle physics.