Policy

Elizabeth Warren Won't Back Rand Paul's Audit the Fed Bill

Populist hero?

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Large image on homepages | Bill Maher
(Bill Maher)
Elizabeth Warren
Bill Maher

Sen. Elizabeth Warren—that beloved populist and bank-busting champion of the little guy—has long vowed to bring accountability to the government, stop reckless corporate malfeasance, and rescue the economy from the hands of our shadowy overlords.

She does not support Sen. Rand Paul's "Audit the Fed" bill, however.

The Wall Street Journal reports:

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.), a member of the Banking Committee and an outspoken critic of the Fed's oversight of big banks, said she does not support Mr. Paul's proposed legislation, which she said could have "dangerous" implications for monetary policy.

"I strongly support and continue to press for greater congressional oversight of the Fed's regulatory and supervisory responsibilities, and I believe the Fed's balance sheet should be regularly audited – which the law already requires," Ms. Warren said in an emailed statement. "But I oppose the current version of this bill because it promotes congressional meddling in the Fed's monetary policy decisions, which risks politicizing those decisions and may have dangerous implications for financial stability and the health of the global economy."

Mr. Paul, a Republican from Kentucky, introduced the so-called "Audit the Fed" bill last month with 30 co-sponsors, of which only one was a Democrat – Sen. Mazie Hirono of Hawaii.

This news will not surprise anyone who has paid attention to the discrepancies between Warren's deceptively populist rhetoric and her partisan actions. She talks a good game bringing a modicum of fair play to the mega corporations and their allies in Washington, but when push comes to shove, she reliably supports their cronyist practices. She supports the Export-Import Bank, for example.

So the next time anyone talks about Warren in the context of a populist hero, remind them that the senator from Massachusetts believes the activities of the most powerful money-related institution in the country should be hidden from public scrutiny.