Dr. Paul on the Financial Services Hearing, 11/18/08
The Future of the GOP
In the aftermath of the election, the Republican Party must choose whether to embrace the limited government message it once espoused, or to continue down the path of excessive spending, out of control growth of government, unconstitutional wars, and attacks on personal liberties.
Dr. Paul begins his analysis of the future of the GOP by writing:
"(CNN) -- The questions now being asked are: Where to go from here and who's to blame for the downfall of the Republican Party?"
Posted by Don Rasmussen on 11/23/08 Last updated 11/23/08
You would think that a 39 city protest involving thousands of people might warrant a national wire story, maybe a mention on cable news, but no. Reporters don't understand the issue and therefore they ignore it. Of course this can be said for most of the important issues that affect people's lives. Hence we get wall-to-wall coverage of the Obama daughter's educational preferences. Fiddling while Rome burns seems almost understated.
There was some local coverage (1,2,3,4,5,6) and the Russians were all over it. Most of it misses the point, but what are you going to do? A few months ago this wasn't even an issue and many of us owe Ron Paul a considered debt of gratitude for raising it to prominence. Maybe one day, some reporter might even realize he's sitting on the biggest story of the last hundred years; the looting of the American people to the tune of 95% of our money's value.
Maybe that industrious reporter will open a history book and learn that the dangers of central banking were well understood by such radical fringe players as Thomas Jefferson and John F. Kennedy. He might learn that Woodrow Wilson realized that he had enabled the eventual destruction of America with the signing of the Federal Reserve Act writing, "I am a most unhappy man. I have unwittingly ruined my country.”
He might even figure out that this system impoverishes our most vulnerable citizen's by destroying their purchasing power and enslaving them in unnecessary welfare systems that need naught ever to have existed. He might learn that inflation is a means of paying for aggressive wars indirectly and therefore avoiding the direct cost of taxation which would raise opposition among the people.
He might also discover that the Constitution demands that our government control our nation’s money supply and that the Federal Reserve is a private bank that not even members of congress are allowed to oversee.
If he is really sharp, he might also figure out that fractional reserve banking and fiat money systems must necessarily fail over time and we have reached the end of the line.With a little evaluation, he may conclude that central banking has led us to the point of the complete collapse of the international economic order and the end of the dollar and our way of life with it.
That stuff Republicans are now realizing they have to do in the future? Paul did it months ago. Excited new voters beyond the base? Check. Raised massive amounts of money from small donations online? Ditto. Legions of creative people generating their own campaign content on YouTube and beyond? Did it. Young voters? Had those.
Posted by Matt Hawes on 11/22/08 Last updated 11/22/08
Dr. Paul's statement from November 20, 2008:
Madame Speaker, many Americans are hoping the new administration will solve the economic problems we face. That’s not likely to happen, because the economic advisors to the new President have no more understanding of how to get us out of this mess than previous administrations and Congresses understood how the crisis was brought about in the first place.
Except for a rare few, Members of Congress are unaware of Austrian Free Market economics. For the last 80 years, the legislative, judiciary and executive branches of our government have been totally influenced by Keynesian economics. If they had had any understanding of the Austrian economic explanation of the business cycle, they would have never permitted the dangerous bubbles that always lead to painful corrections.
Today, a major economic crisis is unfolding. New government programs are started daily, and future plans are being made for even more. All are based on the belief that we’re in this mess because free-market capitalism and sound money failed. The obsession is with more spending, bailouts of bad investments, more debt, and further dollar debasement. Many are saying we need an international answer to our problems with the establishment of a world central bank and a single fiat reserve currency. These suggestions are merely more of the same policies that created our mess and are doomed to fail.
At least 90% of the cause for the financial crisis can be laid at the doorstep of the Federal Reserve. It is the manipulation of credit, the money supply, and interest rates that caused the various bubbles to form. Congress added fuel to the fire by various programs and institutions like the Community Reinvestment Act, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, FDIC, and HUD mandates, which were all backed up by aggressive court rulings.
The Fed has now doled out close to $2 trillion in subsidized loans to troubled banks and other financial institutions. The Federal Reserve and Treasury constantly brag about the need for “transparency” and “oversight,” but it’s all just talk — they want none of it. They want secrecy while the privileged are rescued at the expense of the middle class.
It is unimaginable that Congress could be so derelict in its duty. It does nothing but condone the arrogance of the Fed in its refusal to tell us where the $2 trillion has gone. All Members of Congress and all Americans should be outraged that conditions could deteriorate to this degree. It’s no wonder that a large and growing number of Americans are now demanding an end to the Fed.
The Federal Reserve created our problem, yet it manages to gain even more power in the socialization of the entire financial system. The whole bailout process this past year was characterized by no oversight, no limits, no concerns, no understanding, and no common sense.
Similar mistakes were made in the 1930s and ushered in the age of the New Deal, the Fair Deal, the Great Society and the supply-siders who convinced conservatives that deficits didn’t really matter after all, since they were anxious to finance a very expensive deficit-financed American empire.
All the programs since the Depression were meant to prevent recessions and depressions. Yet all that was done was to plant the seeds of the greatest financial bubble in all history. Because of this lack of understanding, the stage is now set for massive nationalization of the financial system and quite likely the means of production.
Posted by Don Rasmussen on 11/21/08 Last updated 11/21/08
Just yesterday I received a previously unknown set of pictures from the Rally for the Republic After-Party. Some of them are great so I figured I would share. If any of you have a good shot of Aimee and Jimmie performing together, please send it to me at don@campaignforliberty.com. I don't want to bog this page down with a bunch of pictures, so you can see more by clicking over to my long neglected personal blog, The Freeman's Burden. A special thanks to Charlie at Epic Productions for sending these along. Enjoy.
Posted by Don Rasmussen on 11/21/08 Last updated 11/22/08
As you know, the Campaign for Liberty Store will be rolling out in just a few days. Initially, the product line will be somewhat limited, but we are prepared to move forward aggressively to expand it to provide the types of merchandise that you would most enjoy and will best spread the message of liberty and the C4L.Please use this space to give us your thoughts about the kind of products that you would like to see and would be inclined to purchase.
Posted by Adam de Angeli on 11/21/08 Last updated 11/21/08
For those of you attending Federal Reserve protests tomorrow (a lot of you, I bet), here is a hand-out for people you might meet there. There are still a number of freedom activists out there who have not yet joined with Campaign for Liberty, and it's critical that we unite and expand our numbers at each and every opportunity. There's not much better time than tomorrow.
To print, download the 2-per-page version, set it to print 8x10, centered on page. Print, then cut in half. There is room in the lower-right corner for stamping/writing your name and number for people.
And don't forget that Dr. Paul will be speaking around 12:30 pm central at the Houston End the Fed event.
While enjoying the festivities if you are able to attend, please keep in mind that the organizers are promoting a peaceful event. Anything along the lines of vandalism or violence will only discredit the movement and set back our efforts to reform our nation's monetary system. The battle to reclaim our Republic is just beginning, and it is a fight that we can and will win if we stick together and work hard.
Posted by Matt Hawes on 11/21/08 Last updated 11/21/08
Thanks to everyone who called their Senators and wrote letters! The bailout of the auto industry has been tabled for now, but it appears that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is leaving the option open for the Senate to return in December if the auto industry can put together a proposal by December 2nd.
Make sure to keep spreading the word on the bailout, but thanks again to all those who helped push the issue off the table for now.
Posted by Don Rasmussen on 11/21/08 Last updated 11/21/08
Dr. Paul has often said that if we are to have this revolution and fundamentally change our nation and its politics, it will come from the ground up.It is very exciting to see so many patriots taking this important charge to heart instead of sitting on their hands waiting for C4L, or Dr. Paul, or someone else to tell them what to do.We have said from the start that we can provide tools and knowledge, but at the heart of this movement is personal responsibility for your communities, your families, and yourselves.
That is why I love to see projects like the one I am featuring today.It’s called The Valley Grassroots and it has been developed by supporters in the Fargo North Dakota area to coordinate, communicate and organize their efforts.They focus on local issues as well as national issues and seek to compliment the Campaign for Liberty.Congratulations to everyone involved and keep up the great work!
Posted by Matt Hawes on 11/21/08 Last updated 11/21/08
Dr. Paul will be interviewed on Progressive Radio Network's The Gary Null Show at noon eastern today, and will also appear on Scott Horton's Antiwar.com radio show at 12:15 pm eastern.
Listen live to Gary Null here and get more information on Scott Horton's show here.
Update: Dr. Paul will also be doing a phone interview on FOX News' Your World w/Neil Cavuto at 4:05 pm eastern later today.
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