Saturday, September 18, 2010

Ron Paul: Are Consumers Finally Winning in Washington?

Are Consumers Finally Winning in Washington? PDF Print E-mail

This past week the administration announced its choice for the first credit czar at the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.  This bureau was created as part of the supposed Wall Street reform bill recently passed by Congress.  This new bureau, which represents nothing more than another layer of useless Washington bureaucracy, will be housed within the Federal Reserve-- one of the most anti-consumer institutions in Washington. 

The appointee named to run the bureau is an Ivy League professor. By her own admission she is an academic, not a business person.  She has very little real world business experience with the highly complex financial instruments she will oversee.  The administration has done nothing to refute her characterization by some in the financial press as an anti-business, ivory tower leftist with an aversion to free market principles.

She also admits to being told, or warned, that the big banks always win in Washington - yet she trumpeted the creation of this new agency as a win against those banks.  I would caution her against declaring victory too soon.

Outrageously, she has been appointed as a “special adviser” to design and lead the bureau, but the administration has not disclosed the exact length of her term.  There will be no Senate confirmation hearings, nor will the public or the financial industry be allowed to comment on her appointment.  We simply are expected to accept the appointment of an enormously powerful regulator without question, and without regard to the constitutional requirement that the Senate advise and consent with regard to her appointment.  This means you, as a voter and citizen, effectively have no say whatsoever for the duration of her appointment.  In the meantime, she has unprecedented new powers over private business decisions.

The truth is that this new bureau is just more of the same ineffective and damaging regulation we typically get from a crisis.  Just as the FDA serves big pharmaceutical companies, not patients, and just as the SEC serves Wall Street, not investors, this agency will end up serving the banks.  All regulatory agencies eventually become co-opted by the industries they regulate, and they become chiefly concerned with restricting the entry of new competitors and protecting market share for the big players.  This new bureau is not likely to straighten out Wall Street, so much as it will instill a false sense of security in the public about banking and investing again.

No bureaucrat, no federal agency, and no ivory tower academic can replace the regulatory powers of the free market.  “Caveat emptor” remains the rule for intelligent investors and depositors. Buyers always need to beware, especially when politicians say they have it all under control.

Real reform starts with transparency and an adherence to the rule of law.  The administration would do well to adhere to the law, rather than shoving a new economic czar down our throats without congressional involvement.  Real reform would mean taking steps toward restoring sound money and getting back to the Constitution.  The Constitution does not allow for favors to special interests, or handing out public money to keep private businesses afloat.  The Constitution necessitates a small, impartial government that first and foremost, protects liberty, and sees all citizens as equal.  It does not recognize a special banking class.  The fact that measures to achieve these ends are still quashed tells me that indeed, the banks do still win in Washington.

http://paul.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1779:are-consumers-finally-winning-in-washington&catid=31:texas-straight-talk
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I Refuse To Comply With The Unconstitutional Demands Of The Federal Government

"The 'art' of politics is diverting attention from what's
really happening. What separates politicians from other
criminal organizations is superior public relations."
- Marc Stevens

"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free it
expects something that cannot be."
- Thomas Jefferson

Re: Censorship W/I DC News Networks?? Do Tell.

I hope McKelway blows the lid off of the partisan reporting of this station.
 
 


 

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545 People Control Our Lives

545 PEOPLE
By Charlie Reese

Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.

Have you ever wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?

Have you ever wondered, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?

You and I don't propose a federal budget. The president does.

You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations - the House of Representatives does.

You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does.

You and I don't set fiscal policy - Congress does.

You and I don't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.

One hundred Senators, 435 Congressmen, one president, and nine Supreme Court justices equates to 545 human beings out of the 300+ million are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central bank.

I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman, or a president to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash.

The politician has the power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator's responsibility to determine how he, or she votes.

Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.

What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood up and criticized the President for creating deficits. The president can only propose a budget - he cannot force the Congress to accept it.

The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes. Who is the speaker of the House? Nancy Pelosi. She is the leader of the majority party. She and fellow House members, not the president, can approve any budget they want. If the president vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto if they agree to.

It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300+ million cannot replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts -- of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist. (Consider, what has the federal government gotten itself into that has actually worked?)

If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair

If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red.

If the Army and Marines are in IRAQ (and elsewhere), it's because they want them in IRAQ.

If they do not receive Social Security but are on an elite retirement plan not available to (We) the people, it's because they want it that way.

There are no insoluble government problems.

Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power. Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like "the economy," "inflation," or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

Those 545 people and they alone are responsible -- they and they alone have the power.

They and they alone should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses.

Provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees.

We should vote all of them out of office and clean up their mess!

# # #

--
I Refuse To Comply With The Unconstitutional Demands Of The Federal Government

"The 'art' of politics is diverting attention from what's
really happening. What separates politicians from other
criminal organizations is superior public relations."
- Marc Stevens

"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free it
expects something that cannot be."
- Thomas Jefferson

Re: Fascist / Communist / Socialist...or what?

Good Afternoon Nominal,
 
I see it close to the way you do, (I think...);  more of a circle, (which I have attached)  and I am not really sure if I agree with the, "Fascist" tag....In my opinion, Fascists reject egalitarism, which is a major component of the Democratic Party to date.  As stated, I see political and economic systems more of a "circular" and, "Varying Degree" type of status.   
 
Nominal, I wrote the crux of this (below) about a year ago,  and although somewhat off of point from what your focus is on, I think it defines and describes my political viewpoint:
 
 
In my opinion, the United States is still a very conservative Nation.  Americans, (and yes, I am stererotyping) for the most part, believe in a host of conservative principles, a few of which are: The concepts of free speech; a free, independent press;  the right to own firearms;  the right to be secured in their homes, papers and effects without unreasonable searches;  a right to a fair trial by an impartial jury; a strong national defense;  and a federal and State government that are limited and "restricted"; especially when it comes to the government's involvement in our day-to-day lives.    All of these sound familiar, and are tenets from our Constitution and Declaration of Independence.   Nevertheless, all of these principals are conservative principles that as stated, for the most part most Americans believe in.  I don't think there is any denying this.
 
To classify "conservatives" as, "Republicans" is misplaced.  There are at least four or five broad classifications of voter types that usually vote Republican; a coalition if you will; and  some of these group's beliefs obviously overlap.  Just as important, again, I am stereotyping:
 
The "Social Conservatives", or "traditionalists"; sometimes unflatteringly referred to as the  "fundamentalist religious zealots"; of which family, church and community are their most important issues;
 
The "Economic Conservatives"; who view nature as actually benign, encouraging individualism, experimentation, and entrepreneurship;
 
The "Libertarians"; or "Constitutionalists; who in general look for a strict adherence to the Constitution, and a very limited, restricted government;
 
The "Fatalists"; or, (again for lack of a better term) the "NeoCons"; (and I detest that term, because by definition, all "NeoCons" are former Democrats) who generally believe in a strong central government, with a "Federalist" perspective.   See Bill Kristol, Charles Krauthammer, Mort Kondrake; et. al.   
 
I will be the first to admit, that the Republican Party lost its way in the late 1990s and early 2000s.  In general, (again, I am stereotyping!!)  President Bush was not a conservative, but some hybrid "moderate", or "egalitarian" with "NeoCon" and "social conservative" viewpoints. 
 
With the exception of Jimmy Carter, the Bush Administration might very well have been one of the worst presidencies in yours and my lifetime, (although the Johnson Administration ranks up there too). 
 
Like it or not, if Republicans want to be in the majority, all of these aforementioned groups must form a coalition, (which we have done successfully for the most part of the latter half of the 20th Century).  Both economic and social conservatives, as well as the Libertarians, and NeoCons are stuck with one other, if we want to be in the majority--or at least if we do not want a coalition of egalitarians, socialists and fatalists in control.
 
To even protect ourselves from the governmental intrusions of the "egalitarian-socialist-liberal" and "fatalist-NeoCon" types on the left, Traditionalists and Libertarians must respect each other's bottom line values.  Economic conservatives must be explicit that the traditional values are the goal, even if they stress more that the means should be voluntary ones. Social conservatives must recognize a difference between recognizing moral ills and the temptation of translating their solution into national laws, even if they must insist upon public discussion of the ultimate value-goals and their solution by voluntary and local means. If both conservative factions do not accommodate their natural allies, the other guys will determine what the goals are and use national government means to enforce them.
 
This is the reason that I chose (now, almost three years ago);  to once again get very active in Republican politics here locally (in the State of Florida)  in an attempt to take my party back from those who I believe have hijacked the leadership of the Republican Party. 
 
No question, the  "fundamentalist religious zealots";  (Again, for lack of a better term) and "NeoCons"; and as stated, I despise the term "NeoCon", but everyone seems to understand to some degree, who I am referencing have been in control of the Republican Party for way too long, causing disarray, and party splits on a number of issues, that would take too long to get into, but by example, Terri Schiavo, the Patriot Act, The Department of Homeland Security, and our lack of a succinct immigration policy and securing of our borders are great examples of complex issues where the Republican Party has failed, because of those NeoCons and Zealots being in control.  
 
The Republican Party Leadership must return to and once again advocate the "Conservative-Libertarian-Constitutionalist" values that were so successful, and of which Ronald Reagan championed and advocated back in the 1980s.   I believe that you are going to see a house cleaning in 2010, on both sides of the aisle, and a return to these conservative libertarian principles in the next 18-24 months, which still allows for and respects those Traditionalist/Social Conservative values and champions fiscal responsibility and the principles of the Economic Conservatives.
 
Keith 

 

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Make Tea/Coffee While Driving !

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