# What is this "Audit the Fed" stuff I have been hearing about? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [July 24, 2012, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235 "2012-07-24T14:11:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![WillFarnaby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/willfarnaby/32/514_2.png) [@WillFarnaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WillFarnaby)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/41 "2012-07-24T21:43:10Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > To my understanding, there’s supposed to be disclosure of these particular types of transactions by the Fed, five years after they occur. What’s wrong with that? > But in Libertopia, there would be no right for the government to compel a person to disclose such a thing. However, if a person spread HIV, the people he infects could sue him. That’s libertarianism; no nanny-state government is needed, _right?_ > > But in Libertopia, people are against interfering in how a company runs its business. If shareholders and depositors don’t like how transparent a bank’s finances may be, they will take their business elsewhere, _right?_ > Show that it is “blind bias.” > > Also, do you acknowledge that the Fed has been audited annually for many years now? Ron Paul doesn’t seem to understand that point. Throwing all types of “Libertopia” straw men has nothing to do with the bill. I did not advocate libertarianism in this thread. I merely showed support for the bill in question. Ron Paul sees the prior audits as lacking, I never hears him deny their existence. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/42 "2012-07-24T21:45:48Z")
> [@Jonathan\_Chance](#): > > My favorite was the time he said that banks fractional reserve requirement should be 100 percent. Gonna be hard to make loans with that in place. Didja hear the one about how the existence of the FDIC poses a “significant risk” to the economy and monetary system, and later suggests that it be abolished? ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/43 "2012-07-24T21:46:45Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > What makes Paul “more knowledgeable” about “fiscal and monetary matters” than, say, Mo Brooks, Eric Cantor, Jim Jordan, John Campbell, or Jeb Hensarling, who all have actual degrees in economics? Son of a gun, you learn something new everyday. Having heard Congressman Jim Jordan speak, I could’ve sworn his degree was in overused talking points and cliches. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/44 "2012-07-24T21:54:05Z")
> [@WillFarnaby](#): > > Ron Paul sees the prior audits as lacking How? Specifically. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/45 "2012-07-24T22:01:19Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > How? Specifically. They haven’t resulted in the return of the gold standard. Obviously they have failed. ---
**Author:** ![Linden\_Arden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/53a042/32.png) [@Linden\_Arden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linden_Arden)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/46 "2012-07-24T22:28:09Z")
By the way, the Fed does not print currency - the Treasury does. The Fed pays a premium (markup) for the US Dollars it buys. Basically, the US Treasury would have to be involved in this massive conspiracy. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/47 "2012-07-24T22:42:22Z")
> [@zamboniracer](#): > > Son of a gun, you learn something new everyday. Having heard Congressman Jim Jordan speak, I could’ve sworn his degree was in overused talking points and cliches. 😃 Well, they do call it _the dismal science_. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/48 "2012-07-24T22:51:42Z")
> [@Linden\_Arden](#): > > By the way, the Fed does not print currency - the Treasury does. The Fed pays a premium (markup) for the US Dollars it buys. Eh, “print money” is an accepted term for “create dollars”. The Treasury does do the physical printing, but the Fed does what most people mean when they say “print money”. (and the Fed pays the treasury for manufacturing the dollars, but only the actual cost to produce the physical money. The treasury gets much less then a dollar from the Fed for each dollar that it produces. There’s no “premium” so far as I know). ---
**Author:** ![Linden\_Arden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/53a042/32.png) [@Linden\_Arden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linden_Arden)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/49 "2012-07-24T23:21:52Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > Eh, “print money” is an accepted term for “create dollars”. The Treasury does do the physical printing, but the Fed does what most people mean when they say “print money”. Thus the whole gist of the central bank argument. People forget that dollars vanish as easily as they are created. $15 trillion in net worth vanished in 2008. The Fed struggled but prevented another Great Depression via its extraordinary actions. ---
**Author:** ![Linden\_Arden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/53a042/32.png) [@Linden\_Arden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linden_Arden)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/50 "2012-07-24T23:29:05Z")
> [@newcomer](#): > > Every bank in US was audited yet financial crisis occurred. Which means, either auditors were clueless or risky subprime was well hidden and excluded from audit scope. Somehow, I lean toward the latter. Neither. Risk management was eschewed. In a bull market rick analysis is always lax (1960-2007). Now risk is too strict. This is a centuries old cycle. ---
**Author:** ![Linden\_Arden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/53a042/32.png) [@Linden\_Arden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linden_Arden)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/51 "2012-07-24T23:35:03Z")
> [@sweeteviljesus](#): > > No, I meant respond to the part about the bill forcing the Fed to disclose which banks sought bailouts. (his 4th paragraph) > > Thanks, > Rob They were loans that were repaid. “Bailout” is a loaded term. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/52 "2012-07-25T02:21:06Z")
> [@newcomer](#): > > I know what audit means. I also know that the most important aspect of Feds operation is not audited. What aspect was that? How was it not “audited”? What should it have been audited to? > [@](#): > > Every bank in US was audited yet financial crisis occurred. Which means, either auditors were clueless or risky subprime was well hidden and excluded from audit scope. Somehow, I lean toward the latter. Or maybe an “audit” does not mean “a magical process that prevents all problems from happening.” ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/53 "2012-07-25T03:04:15Z")
Isn’t excess ‘scrutiny’ (i.e. control) one of those issues that 3rd world countries have that causes them so much trouble in the long run? Politicians meddle with their nation’s ‘fed’ to get short term jumps in the economy during election years but that hamstring them for the long haul. Or am I thinking of something else. ---
**Author:** ![newcomer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e5b9ba/32.png) [@newcomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newcomer)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/54 "2012-07-25T16:13:16Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > What aspect was that? How was it not “audited”? What should it have been audited to? On YouTube you can find recent C-SPAN interview with Ron Paul - I think it’s from Monday. They even have video from Bernanke’s last week Congress testimony where he explicitly rejects a specific audit request (Fed’s deliberations & decisions process) that Ron talks about. I have a feeling that number of commenters are not informed at all on intricacies of the law proposed and then wonder why is law needed. Also, number of comments are questioning Ron’s qualifications as if being a Chairman on Domestic Monetary Policy and Technology means nothing. However, suffice is to say that Bernanke knows very well what Ron wants therefore, strong words last week. That, to me, is the best proof that Ron knows what he’s talking about. > [@RickJay](#): > > Or maybe an “audit” does not mean “a magical process that prevents all problems from happening.” What “Stop’n’Frisk” does for reduction of crime in NYC that’s what audit of Feds should do in the area of nation’s finances. On a related note, I’d like to reiterate my question that nobody touched - was a decision to create Maiden Lane(s) not only an economic but a political decision too? Or, how up to speed are you on Operation Twist’s negligible results? ---
**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/55 "2012-07-25T16:31:04Z")
> [@Mr.Miskatonic](#): > > Isn’t excess ‘scrutiny’ (i.e. control) one of those issues that 3rd world countries have that causes them so much trouble in the long run? Politicians meddle with their nation’s ‘fed’ to get short term jumps in the economy during election years but that hamstring them for the long haul. This is pretty much it. Other countries have institutions called something like “Bank of \” which are, in first-world countries, largely independent of the government for the purpose of preventing politicians from screwing with the money supply for political gain. This is generally thought to be a good idea. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/56 "2012-07-25T16:41:24Z")
> [@newcomer](#): > > Also, number of comments are questioning Ron’s qualifications as if being a Chairman on Domestic Monetary Policy and Technology means nothing. It means he’s the senior member of the majority party who sits on the subcommittee - which has existed for all of three years. Why, what do you think it means? I’ll ask again: > [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > What do you base this claim on? Does Paul have any formal education in economics? Accounting? Business? Is he recognized as an expert by any academic of professional organization? > > What makes Paul “more knowledgeable” about “fiscal and monetary matters” than, say, Mo Brooks, Eric Cantor, Jim Jordan, John Campbell, or Jeb Hensarling, who all have actual degrees in economics? ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/57 "2012-07-25T16:58:55Z")
> [@newcomer](#): > > What “Stop’n’Frisk” does for reduction of crime in NYC that’s what audit of Feds should do in the area of nation’s finances. :dubious: It should harass black people? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/58 "2012-07-25T17:01:49Z")
Presumably some of the people caught under the “stop and frisk” policy are actually committing crimes. What the fuck is the audit supposed to catch? ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/59 "2012-07-25T17:05:27Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Presumably some of the people caught under the “stop and frisk” policy are actually committing crimes. Fewer than by _not_ having the policy. Going after people for being suspicious is more likely to catch criminals than going after them for having the wrong skin color. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235/60 "2012-07-25T17:39:17Z")
Perhaps, but that’s a separate thread. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-audit-the-fed-stuff-i-have-been-hearing-about/629235.md?page=4)