Dennis Kucinich States His Intention To Put The Federal Reserve Under Government Control

[keep_it_real]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-r_-QRKyu6g

[babylonsister]

1. fyi, from January. nt

[Cheney Killed Bambi]

2. Duh, the federal reserve IS the government

the idea of putting it under government control is nonsensical.

[Zynx]

4. Beat me to it.

And I certainly don't want Congress setting monetary policy.

[Sebastian Doyle]

5. It most certainly is not.

it's a privately owned bank, creating money out of nothing.

[MindMatter]

19. The statement is literally true, even it it wasn't intended that way

The FED *IS* the government, in the sense that it represents the narrow interests that are truly in charge. This election business is just window dressing. As anybody can plainly see, those who control the money are the ones who are in charge.

[Hippo_Tron]

34. The Board of Governors is appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate

That is the very definition of government control.

[MindMatter]

45. Always picked from teh same gene pool and

after the Congress rubber stamps the appointments, they have absolutely no power of oversight. None. Period. That's the way the bankers set it up.

[Baikonour]

52. And yet the stock-holders in the Fed always stay the same.

Rockefellers, Morgans, etc...

[Hippo_Tron]

56. The stockholders don't have any say in who sits on the board of governors

They get some say in the boards of directors on each of the 12 fed banks. The boards of directors only have the powers delegated to them by the board of governors, which are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.

[burythehatchet]

8. How is the fed the government?

[Name removed]

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[Name removed]

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[Junkdrawer]

22. Nope. Privately owned. The president appoints and the Senate approves...

the Chairman and some of the board.

[anigbrowl]

25. Why do people keep repeating this lie?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Reserve

Get yourself an edumacation.

[G_j]

30. a quasi-public (government entity with private components) banking system

"...a quasi-public (government entity with private components) banking system<1> that comprises (1) the presidentially appointed Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in Washington, D.C.; (2) the Federal Open Market Committee; (3) twelve regional privately-owned Federal Reserve Banks located in major cities throughout the nation acting as fiscal agents for the U.S. Treasury, each with its own nine-member board of directors; (4) numerous other private U.S. member banks, which subscribe to required amounts of non-transferable stock in their regional Federal Reserve Banks; and (5) various advisory councils"

[anigbrowl]

41. And member banks of 12 Federal Reserve Banks have almost no voting rights.

Plus all the profit from the Fed goes to Treasury. Member banks get a fixed 6% dividend on their stockholding, but no interest on their capital adequacy deposits, so they derive no net financial benefit from it. Notice those words like 'required' and 'non-transferable stock'. the Fed's scope is governed by law, not the whims of its members. I wish people who complain about it would actually read the legislation that governs it instead of regurgitating right wing conspiracy theories.

[MindMatter]

46. They aren't trying to take a profit to the Fed's bottom line

The real profit is in the fact that they create an unlimited supply of money for their banker friends who pay the government NOTHING for that. They set the rules that allow the banks to leverage themselves to the hilt.

Start your education by learning about the fractional reserve system. It is an eye opener once you actually understand what is going on here.

[caseymoz]

82. Before you had a Federal Reserve, J.P. Morgan (the person) rescued the economy a few times

The Fed was created so the government didn't have to turn to a robber baron at every crisis and panic. Congress was in charge of monetary policy, (as the constitution originally said) and it kept on making a mess of it. It was determined that you had to have some technocrats doing maintenance on the economy so the wheels didn't fall off suddenly.

The Fed Reserve should be altered-- I'm not in any way certain I want Congress in charge of it, right now.

[MindMatter]

84. I agree with that.

I don't want it to be entirely a Federal agency. But we need a whole lot more accountability. The Fed should not be able to arbitrarily create an unlimited amount of money. The Fed, a completely autonomous organization, should not be in the position of policing the banks -- or deciding how leveraged they can be. Those are proper roles of our elected government.

[Greyhound]

49. Are you purposely obtuse or just simple minded?

Never mind, rhetorical question.

[Hippo_Tron]

36. The federal reserve board of governors is entirely appointed by the President

The banks that own stock in the federal reserve get a say in who sits on each 12 fed banks' boards of directors. Each board of directors has only the powers that the board of governors delegates to them. Private banks as a condition of owning stock in the federal reserve are subject to numerous government laws and regulations.

[Greyhound]

50. And the appointments are staggered so that a President has to win two terms

to appoint the whole board.

[Hippo_Tron]

55. Every President two terms or not gets to appoint a Fed Chairman

And the Chairman has more power than the other members do.

[Greyhound]

57. True.

[readmoreoften]

47. "Duh!" It most certainly is not.

:eyes:

[Name removed]

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[earth mom]

60. Duh-NO it's not!The Federal Reserve is a private entity-you should know this by now-everyone should.

Here, educate yourself:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7065205277695921912&hl=en

[tritsofme]

3. Wow, I probably couldn't think of a more horrible idea.

The Federal Reserve should not be politicized.

And people wonder why people want nothing to do with this guy?

[ZombieHorde]

6. Why shouldn't the Fed. Res. be under Gov. control?

[tritsofme]

7. Monetary policy should be indepedent of the whims of politicians.

Central bankers should be able to make the correct decisions despite the potential political consequences of those in power.

[Sebastian Doyle]

12. Thomas Jefferson didn't think so.

"The central bank is an institution of the most deadly hostility existing against the Principles and form of our Constitution. I am an Enemy to all banks discounting bills or notes for anything but Coin. If the American People allow private banks to control the issuance of their currency, first by inflation and then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the People of all their Property until their Children will wake up homeless on the continent their Fathers conquered."

I imagine Tom is really doing some serious cartwheels in his grave right about now.

[tritsofme]

13. That was a very polarizing topic in his day, don't forget.

For all his wisdom, he certainly could not imagine the global economy that exists in 2009.

[Abq_Sarah]

14. Jefferson

Was violently opposed to "paper money" and government control of banking.

[Hippo_Tron]

38. Thomas Jefferson envisioned a society where everyone was a yeoman farmer

Absolutely no industry and go ahead and slaughter all of the Indains so that white people can have that land to be subsistence farmers.

Not to say that he didn't do some great things but we would be a third world country if we had stuck to the economic system he envisioned.

[girl gone mad]

18. But in reality, it never works that way.

Greenspan made dozens of politically motivated decisions as Fed Chairman, including the decision to promote Bush's "ownership society" agenda by consistently keeping interest rates artificially low, which was central to our current crisis.

[BrightKnight]

31. Yes, but it is worth trying to make it appear independent.

Dennis Kucinich rhetoric would take another big bite out of my retirement if anyone took him seriously.

I actually like Dennis Kucinich but he goes off in the weeds sometimes.

[G_j]

23. in theory, the 'politicians' in Congress, represent the people, nt

[arikara]

35. Because they are doing such a good job

now?

:rofl:

[femrap]

48. And just look at the fine mess

we find ourselves in after the pathetic actions of Greenspan. You appear to be a hardy repugnant who stands tall for the rich white boyz....

Off to add to my Ignore List.

[tritsofme]

59. Just a reminder.

In case you forgot to add me.

[ZombieHorde]

58. Have the central bankers demonstrated the ability to make correct decisions?

[MindMatter]

21. Name one other country where the money supply is not under any government control

There is absolutely no government control over Fed activities. They can create all the money they want and give it to anybody they want, and there is nothing any Senator, Congressman, or bureaucrat can do about it.

The only control is once every 6 years when the president appoints a new Fed chair, and in every case, the President has picked one of the foxes to guard the hen house. And why is that? Because it is the fed, not the President, that is running this country.

[tritsofme]

24. The parliaments of countries in the eurozone have no control whatsoever over monetary policy.

Only the power to withdraw from the currency.

So proportionately, in our system with the president picking a new Fed chair every six years, our federal government has far more power than any single state in the eurozone.

[anigbrowl]

26. The UK also has an independent central bank.

In modern finance, and independent central bank is seen as a useful balancing mechanism for the treasury. This is because we have so many examples of bad governments messing with the money supply for political reasons, resulting in disaster.

[MindMatter]

39. The Chancellor has a whole lot more oversight than we have

Literally we have absolutely no oversight over the Fed. There is no system anywhere like that. The chairman comes before Congress every 6 months and babbles a little, but he isn't accountable for anything under any conditions. He works for the bankers, not for Americans. It is an absolutely bizarre concept. I suspect you don't have a full appreciation for just how unaccountable this organization is -- by design.

[anigbrowl]

42. Funny, a lot of British people feel the same way but in reverse

Clearly, I'm wasting my time trying to argue with people's favorite conspiracy theories. Enjoy your Ron Paul fantasies.

[MindMatter]

43. I've lived in England

The Chancellor is in the news almost daily in times like this, and clearly has a key role in the daily decision-making of the Central Bank. Even if it isn't enshrined in laws substantially different from ours, the actual practice is much different in England. The policy is drives by the elected government, not by the bank. That's a simple fact. YOu don't know what you are talking about.

[anigbrowl]

77. So have I, and I still have family there. I'm not American...

but Irish, and I lived the UK for a decade, working in the City of London for a lot of that time (ie, the financial district). I could give you a bunch of parallels with the UK recession at the beginning of the 90s, and how and why that led to the UK's central bank becoming independent...but I don't think you'd be interested.

[MindMatter]

85. Then you know the Chancellor has far more oversight

over the Bank than anybody in our government has over the Fed. I mean for Crissakes, the only oversight requirement is that the Chairman comes before Congress a couple times a year, babbles something incoherently, and then leaves.

[anigbrowl]

86. Sorry, I don't agree.

Nor do I find fed chairman's testimony to be incoherent babble. Maybe you just don't understand what he's saying, ever considered that possibility?

There are differnces between the Bank of England and the Federal reserve, but many of the boE's former regulatory functions have been spun off into separate agencies and these days the bank's primary functions are to set monetary policy and operate the national mint (which latter is actually controlled by the treasury in the US).

[tritsofme]

61. 16 highly developed nations in the EU have much less control over their monetary policy

than the United States.

To keep saying there is no system like that anywhere else is simply not true.

[Hippo_Tron]

40. Congress can impeach the fed board of governors...

And they can also make laws to restrict the board of governors' power or to give it to another agency. Just because the libertarian nutjobs say that the federal reserve controls the country and not the President, does not mean that is the case.

[MindMatter]

44. And the last time they did that was ... ?

And why will they never touch the Fed? Because in fact it is the Fed and the bankers they represent who are calling all the shots in this country.

I can understand a person being skeptical about that theory 5 years ago, or even two years ago. But anybody who denies it now is simply not paying much attention.

[earth mom]

62. Sounds like you've been listening to Rush & O'Lielly.

:eyes:


:puke:

[Greyhound]

74. That's funny, because that is exactly what the authors of the Constitution

had in mind. These were men that were intimately familiar with the banking system and felt it was important enough that we avoid it that they fought to get it into the founding document of our nation's government.

[tritsofme]

78. Like George Washington, who created the First Bank of the United States?

To the chagrin of Thomas Jefferson no doubt, but the idea of a central bank was a controversial concept in that day. It isn't today.

Among the serious men, that have responsibility in government, there is no discussion about the prudence of an independent central bank.

It is only Kuciniches on the left and the Ron Paul nutters on the right.

We're lucky to have adults in charge.

[Greyhound]

80. Read, please. n/t

[Gregorian]

9. Interesting posts.

Recommending. I want to see more thought on this. I'm totally uninformed on the Fed Reserve.

[Ikonoklast]

17. Google 'The Creature From Jekyll Island'

Some wing-nuttery there, but basically the money supply of this country is in private hands with very little direct government control of any kind.

[Sebastian Doyle]

10. Here's what REAL United States currency looked like

As you may notice, this bill was printed in 1963. There hasn't been a single paper dollar issued by the US government since then. The first thing LBJ did upon taking office after the murder of JFK was to cancel Kennedy's attempt to get this country off the "Federal Reserve" (which, in reality, is neither).

[54anickel]

20. Evidence that DK doesn't stand much of a chance. Hope he's careful, those

ain't just windmills he's fixin' to tilt at.

[No.23]

28. Is anyone surprised that...

very few people know this?

http://www.john-f-kennedy.net/thefederalreserve.htm

Thanks for bring up the link between JFK and the Federal Reserve.

[illuminaughty]

79. Thank you. Has anyone mentioned that

the Federal Reserve cannot be audited? Not by Congress, GAO, NOBODY.

"No United States president since Abraham Lincoln dared to go against the system and create his own money, as many of these so-called elected presidents were actually only instruments or puppets of the Bankers. That is until President John F. Kennedy came into office.

President Kennedy was not afraid to "buck the system", for he understood how the Federal Reserve System was being used to destroy the United States. As a just and honorable man, he could not tolerate such a system, for it smelled corruption from A to Z. Certainly he must have known about the Greenbacks which Abraham Lincoln created when he was in office.

On June 4th, 1963, President Kennedy signed a presidential document, called Executive Order 11110, which further amended Executive order 10289 of September 19th, 1951. This gave Kennedy, as President of the United States, legal clearance to create his own money to run the country, money that would belong to the people, an interest and debt-free money. He had printed United States Notes, completely ignoring the Federal Reserve Notes from the private banks of the Federal Reserve.

Our records show that Kennedy issued $4,292,893,825 of cash money. It was perfectly obvious that Kennedy was out to undermine the Federal Reserve System of the United States.

But it was only a few months later, in November of 1963, that the world received the shocking news of President Kennedy's assassination. No reason was given, of course, for anyone wanting to commit such an atrocious crime. But for those who knew anything about money and banking, it did not take long to put the pieces of the puzzle together. For surely, President Kennedy must have had it in mind to repeal the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, and return back to the United States Congress the power to create its own money.

It is interesting to note that, only one day after Kennedy's assassination, all the United States notes which Kennedy had issued were called out of circulation. Was this through an executive order of the newly-installed president, Lyndon B. Johnson? Or was he one of their instruments? At any rate, all of the money President Kennedy had created was destroyed. And not a word was said to the American people."

[Holly_Hobby]

81. I have a question for you.....

Can the gov't COIN money? They do make coins, correct?

Why can't they coin enough to clean up the entire mess? Our money isn't backed by anything anyway, is it?

I balance a checkbook, but know nothing else about money. Obvious, I know, but I'd really like an answer, if you know. TIA

I heard a woman talking about it on Thom Hartmann, but I can't find her website anymore. She said that hyperinflation would NOT be a problem.

On edit, her name is Ellen Hodgson Brown - mentioned in post #11

http://www.webofdebt.com/

Here is part of the transcript:

...

: The solution is that the government itself should be creating our money supply. And that's where most people think money comes from. If you ask anybody on the street, who makes our money, they think it's the government. In fact it all comes from private banks.

: Except for coins.

: Except for coins, which is just a token. It's just a remnant of what they put in the constitution, which is that Congress shall have the power to coin money.

: Right.

: In fact I read somebody's opinion, I think it was somebody from the Mint said that you could solve the whole problem by printing, or stamping, ten one-trillion-dollar coins, I mean today, that's what it would be, and then just pay off the debt with these ten trillion dollars worth of coins. Because there's no, it doesn't say in the Constitution what the face value of these coins would be.

: Oh, that's amazing! Now, let me just wrap my brain around that for a minute. Here's the, the reason, just to back up a little bit. The reason that the US mint is making coins, and not the Federal Reserve Bank, and the reason why our coins don't say Federal Reserve pennies, they say actually US money, is because our coinage, the Constitution says that the federal government has the exclusive right to manufacture coins.

: It says, yeah, Congress shall have the power to coin money, and that's all it says about creating money.

: Right.

: It doesn't say who has the power to print money or to create, obviously, electronic money, or all those forms that we use today.

: Right, so what the Fed has done, is it's said, 'okay, government, you guys are in charge of pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters'.

: Correct.

: 'And we're in charge of dollar bills on up'.

: Correct.

: And so the Treasury Department could simply say, 'okay, we're gonna start making hundred dollar coins, thousand dollar coins, million dollar coins and by the way we'll make a trillion dollar coin, and with ten of these coins which we will print, we will buy the Fed', do I have that right?

: Right. Well, you don't even need to buy the Fed; it's in the Federal Reserve Act that Congress could just vote to nationalize it, I mean.

...

http://74.6.239.67/search/cache?ei=UTF-8&p=ellen++AND+hodgson++AND+brown++AND+thom++AND+hartmann&vm=r&u=www.thomhartmann.com/index.php%3Foption%3Dcom_content%26task%3Dview%26id%3D1115%26Itemid%3D119&w=ellen+hodgson+brown+browning+thom+hartmann&d=GvD1CZ2uSZX1&icp=1&.intl=us

[roamer65]

87. Delete.

[JohnyCanuck]

11. "The government is in debt to private banks that pretend to have money"

Web of Debt: The Shocking Truth About Our Money System and How We Can Break Free
By Ellen Hodgson Brown
Third Millennium Press; Rev Exp edition (December 22, 2008)
ISBN-10: 0979560829
544 pages; $22.50

If there is one book, one newspaper, one blog, one article, that one should read to understand the current economic crisis, to understand the root of the problem, and to understand its solution, it is “The Web of Debt: The Shocking Truth About Our Monetary System and How We Can Break Free,” by Ellen Hodgson Brown. Brown began writing “Web of Debt,” six years ago, and, while some are surprised at the current national and world economic crisis, others, including Brown, had seen it coming.

In “Web of Debt,” Brown explains our current “debt-based” private banking monetary system and its history, and the ominous role the private bankers have played in shaping national and world events for their own benefit, amassing great wealth and power, and the myth of the free market and the current events on Wall Street, all with fascinating, highly referenced, and understandable detail. She explains that much of history has been a struggle between the public interest and private banks, connecting the dots with a tale of intrigue that leaves the reader enlightened with how the world really works.

Brown explains that the current financial crisis is an end of a 300-year Ponzi scheme known as “Fractional Reserve Banking” run by the private banks, including the Federal Reserve. She further states that this is an opportune time to change the system now that it is collapsing -- to a system where the people, i.e., Congress, take back the constitutional authority to create money (currently residing unconstitutionally in the hands of private bankers) for the good of the people, with the possibility of funding the government with fees and reasonable profits from public banking in lieu of the income tax.

SNIP

US Government as a perpetual debtor for a constant money supply. When loans are repaid, the principal amount of the money created is zeroed out. As Brown explains: “In order to keep money in the system, some major player has to incur substantial debt that never gets paid back; and this role is played by our federal government.” And Brown further notes: “The U.S. federal debt has not been paid off since the days of Andrew Jackson. Only the interest gets paid, while the principal portion continues to grow.” Calls to eliminate the Federal debt logically would need to be accompanied by a change in how money is created, or, rather, who creates the money.

http://onlinejournal.com/artman/publish/article_4427.shtml

[jtrockville]

27. Money used to represent value. Now it represents debt.

I found this video (Money as Debt) to be very thought-provoking: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-9050474362583451279

[Greyhound]

72. As Henry Ford once said;

"It is well enough that people of the nation do not understand our banking and monetary system, for if they did, I believe there would be a revolution before tomorrow morning."

The plain fact is that not 1 in 10 Americans have even the slightest clue about how what we call money, works, where it comes from, or what it represents. But if you asked them if they knew, probably 8 in 10 would say they did.

This is not an accident, nor is it really their fault.

[No.23]

29. No need to control it. Abolish it.

Ron Paul was right.

On this issue, at least.

[Baikonour]

53. It's the only thing he is right about, truthfully.

The rest of his economic policy consists of major tax cuts for the rich, as usual.

[No.23]

65. It's NOT the only thing that he's been right about.

He was also right about what printing money out of thin air will bring us to (we're there).

And he was right about the need to significantly diminish the size of the military industrial complex.

And he was right about the need to terminate the unjust and racist war against drugs.

All of these things, Ralph and Dennis agreed with.

Right on just one thing?

I don't think so.

[Baikonour]

75. At the end of the day, he's just a whacky right wing anti-abortionist.

Yes, civil liberties are great. Unless they involve a woman's womb.

:sarcasm:

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

32. Thank you, Dennis.

Every time somebody tries to tell us that you've got great ideas, but are unpopular simply due to your style, you come up with a stinker like this one.

[femrap]

33. He better be very, very careful....

no airplanes, look both ways when crossing the street, and drive a car with air bags.

[tritsofme]

37. He's been saying crazy shit for years.

And he seems to be doing just fine, outwardly.

[earth mom]

63. Dennis has been speaking truth. You need to quit being brainwashed by Rush & O'Lielly.

Because that's exactly how your posts in this thread sound. :eyes:

[tritsofme]

64. You don't see President Obama or Secretary Geithner out there clamoring

for a central bank that is subservient to the political branches of government.

In fact, I'm sure you would see both of those men defend the independence of the Federal Reserve with much vigor.

Kucinich once against touts a fringe idea, and as usual the adults are not paying attention.

[earth mom]

66. Puhleeze. Obama & Geithner are both status quo. Of course they are going to prop up the system.

Anyone who is paying attention can see that nothing is going to change but only get worse if things are done the way Wall Street & the banks want things to be done.

Obama & Geithner are working to PRESERVE things for the rich & powerful, no matter what they say because actions speak louder than words.

While Kucinich is honestly and ethically working to improve the lives of the middle class, working class & poor.

I support Kucinich because he has MY best interests at heart, not the fat cats on Wall Street.

So, are you a fat cat? :eyes:

[tritsofme]

67. I'm on Team Obama.

These are the people I voted for.

You bet your ass I trust the judgment of President Obama over the fringe rantings of Dennis Kucinich.

[Name removed]

69. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[tritsofme]

70. Politicizing the Federal Reserve is a fringe idea, period.

It has no support in the in the mainstream of political thinking on the left or right.

[earth mom]

71. Wrong-Kucinich is NOT fringe. Quit your bullshit. nt

[G_j]

73. cheap, meaningless

"fringe rantings"


(how original)

[Karenina]

54. Dennis is GREAT!

:kick:

[lovuian]

76. I

Agree

[DainBramaged]

68. ............

[upi402]

83. if government refrains from regulations and allows matters to take their course

"If, however, a government refrains from regulations and allows matters to take their course, essential commodities soon attain a level of price out of the reach of all but the rich, the worthlessness of the money becomes apparent, and the fraud upon the public can be concealed no longer."
John M Keynes

[roamer65]

88. The "Creature from Jekyll Island" will not go easy.

It is a government authorized, private financial monopoly. The creature dates all the ways back to J Pierpont Morgan, who often was the "pet privateer" of the US Treasury.

Ever notice what also came into existence right around the creation of the Federal Reserve?

The IRS.

The first 1040 form from 1913.

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-utl/1913.pdf