Republicans fight back against central bank digital currencies



On May 23, 2024, the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives struck a major blow to the implementation of central bank digital currencies, passing the CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act (H.R. 5403), which prohibits the Federal Reserve from:

  • Directly issuing a CBDC without explicit approval from Congress;
  • Using a CBDC to set monetary policy;
  • Maintaining financial accounts for individuals (something failed Biden nominee Saule Omarova had proposed).

Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.), who is chairman of the House Financial Service Committee, had this to say:

This bill is straightforward. It halts unelected bureaucrats from issuing a central bank digital currency, or CBDC, that would be detrimental to Americans’ right to financial privacy. We’ve already seen examples of governments weaponizing their financial system against their own citizens. For example, the Chinese Communist Party uses a CBDC to track spending habits of its citizens. This data is being used to create a social credit system that rewards or punishes people based on their behavior. That type of financial surveillance has no place in the United States. Concerningly, it appears the current Administration does not agree. In 2022, the White House issued an Executive Order pushing for CBDC research and development. The corresponding report responding to that Executive Order did nothing to ease those concerns. This is why the CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act is necessary.

The globalist Atlantic Council came out firmly against the bill in the confusingly titled editorial, “Don’t let the US become the only country to ban CBDCs”:

In fact, if this bill ever became law, the United States would be the only country in the world to have banned CBDCs. It would be a self-defeating move in the race for the future of money. It would undercut the national security role of the dollar as the decision would only accelerate other countries’ development of alternative payment systems that look to bypass the dollar in cross-border transactions. This would make US sanctions less effective.

The authors, Josh Lipsky and Anaanya Kumar, called the bill “a solution in search of a problem,” since Fed chair Jerome Powell said that he won’t implement a CBDC without congressional approval.

Now the bill must be approved by the Senate and President Biden. The Biden administration has been exploring implementing a CBDC since 2022, and given the partisan slant of the vote, it seems unlikely to succeed, but its passage in the House at least sends a message.

What is a CBDC? A quick refresher

If you’re unfamiliar with CBDCs, we encourage you to check out our CBDC explainer, but here’s a quick rundown of what they are and what they can do:

  • A CBDC is a digital currency like Bitcoin or Ethereum, but issued by a country’s central bank.
  • With a CBDC, the central bank would maintain your account balance instead of an independent regional bank.
  • A CBDC is “programmable,” giving governments and central banks more control over fiscal policy.

For example, with a CBDC, a government could issue a stimulus payment that had to be used in a certain amount of time or could only be used on certain items to reduce the chances of inflation.

The flip side is that governments could use a CBDC to track all economic activity and even control it. For instance, if a government wanted to effectively ban tobacco products without legislation, it could simply exclude them from being purchased with CBDC.

This may sound like a conspiratorial sci-fi fever dream, but it is very real, and high-level individuals at Bank of America, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Economic Forum have publicly gushed about the control CBDCs would give them. It wouldn’t be unfair to liken a CBDC to a “One Ring” of a nation’s economy.

Congressional Democrats call for totalitarian central bank digital currencies and digital ID



During a meeting of the House Financial Services Committee this month, government officials discussed developments in digital identity technologies and central bank digital currencies. These technologies are terrifying to civil liberty advocates because of their potential to turbocharge government oversight and surveillance capabilities.

Democrat legislators expressed support for these surveillance tools while decrying legislative efforts aimed at halting the progress of CBDCs.

Digital IDs, in particular, received strong support from Rep. Bill Foster of Illinois. He endorsed them to be enforced to protect against artificial intelligence, whatever that means. Additionally, he commended the digital ID systems implemented in countries like India, Estonia, and Korea for their ability to police the web.

“A secure digital ID biometrically synced to your smartphone allows individuals to remotely verify that they are who they say they are, saving costs, reducing the likelihood of fraud, and to allow individuals to defend themselves against deepfake identity fraud,” Foster said.

Foster asked about the benefits of having digital IDs during the COVID-19 pandemic and their usefulness in online transactions. While fawning over India's digital ID system, he failed to address the various controversies associated with it, such as significant privacy concerns, financial exclusion for non-participants, and the implementation of mandatory digital ID checks in certain sectors.

Hearing Entitled: Fostering Financial Innovation: How Agencies Can Leverage Technology to Shape...youtu.be

Foster described the digital ID systems in India, Estonia, and Korea as voluntary, highlighting that these countries offer secure digital identification.

However, he’s lying, as the digital ID is not optional in Estonia. From birth, Estonian citizens are integrated into the system with an assigned identity code.

Charles Vice, the director of financial technology and access at the National Credit Union Administration, informed the committee that the NCUA is exploring digital ID technology. He mentioned that several credit unions have already initiated pilot programs for digital ID and spoke positively about the introduction of mobile digital driver's licenses in various U.S. states.

Democrat Rep. Stephen Lynch of Massachusetts shifted the committee's discussion to central bank digital currencies, emphasizing the importance of the United States not lagging behind other nations in CBDC development. If China does something, then we must follow suit, I guess.

With a straight face, he expressed frustration that some of his colleagues on the subcommittee support legislation that would halt CBDC development. Rep. Lynch failed to articulate the myriad of reasons why many are concerned about implementing CBDCs.

Critics of CBDCs, including lawmakers advocating against CBDC-focused bills, argue that such currencies could lead to increased surveillance of financial transactions and potentially enable the control of consumer purchasing choices.

Republican Rep. Warren Davidson of Ohio approached the topic of CBDCs with skepticism during his questioning of Michael S. Gibson, director of the division of supervision and regulation at the Federal Reserve. Davidson's concerns centered on the hiring efforts of the San Francisco and Boston Federal Reserve Banks for CBDC development roles. He pressed Gibson for clarity on the Federal Reserve's research into CBDCs and whether this research signifies a move toward more comprehensive CBDC development.

“You hire people that write code, it starts seeming like you’re developing and building versus researching,” Davidson said.

Gibson claims it’s only for research and that the Federal Reserve is “a long way off from the thinking about the implementation of anything related to a CBDC.”

However, we've been hearing members of the Fed itself sounding the alarm about the implementation of the digital dollar.

The Fed's Neel Kashkari on CBDC:\n\n"If they want to monitor everyone of your transactions you could do that (...) And if you want to directly tax customer accounts you could do that (...) So I get why China would be interested. \n\nWhy would the American people be for that?" #CBDC
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The differing viewpoints expressed during this hearing highlight the broader ideological divide between Democrats and Republicans in the ongoing debate over digital technologies such as digital IDs and CBDCs.

Republicans and civil libertarians tend to approach these technologies with skepticism, focusing on the overwhelming risks and harmful implications. This concern has led to the introduction of various bills aimed at limiting or outright banning these technologies. Democrats generally view these technologies as progressive innovations that will bring equality.

Even if you assign the best of intentions to these organizations that would implement CBDCs and digital ID (which, after the last few years, why would you?), the level of control we would be handing over to the central banks is frightening. With the click of a button, they could shut off banking access to anyone they deem an enemy. Preppers, anti-war leftists, religious dissidents, “cryptobros,” or the political bogeyman du jour could all be simply unbanked. If you don’t think that’s possible, ask the Canadian truckers.

11 plans global elites have for YOUR FUTURE



The global elites and left-wing media have done their best to paint everything they’re planning as a “conspiracy theory.”

However, many of us aren’t gullible enough to believe it.

Glenn Beck is one of those people, and he argues that those “conspiracy theories” are actually “conspiracy FACTS.”

Doug Casey is another man who knows the truth, and Glenn reads one of his articles, titled “11 Assumptions About The Future.” The article can be used to guide our actions moving forward, and it lines up perfectly with the warnings Glenn gave in his latest book, “Dark Future.”

Casey’s first assumption is that there will be “less freedom of movement.”

The global elites will attempt to restrict and regulate our ability to move. Whether through vax passports, increased visa requirements, or 15-minute city initiatives, there will be restrictions that we all need to prepare for.

His second assumption is that there is a central bank digital currency on its way. Casey believes that “cash will be eliminated” and that “major economies are working to be ready to deploy [the CBDC] by 2025.”

Third, the “digital ID is already here.” He writes that “[b]iometrics are the future,” and if you have a government-issued ID associated with your photograph, you’re in the system already.

Number four is “the Greater Depression,” about which Casey cites Simon Hunt. “Hunt suggests a market pullback of up to 30% between now and early 2024 followed by a pump and a deflationary wipeout in 2025.”

His fifth assumption is that most “financial assets will disappear at some point.” Whether because of inflation, bank bail-in, market wipeout, or "the great taking," Casey believes “physical assets are where I need to be, ultimately.”

“Increasing crime and disorder” is his sixth assumption. The increase in crime will “lead to greater physical threats to our lives and property from our fellow man.” Casey warns that avoiding urban environments is likely a safer bet.

Seventh is that “supply constraints are increasing around all commodities,” and globally, people will have a much harder time affording everything from food to energy.

His eighth assumption is that “WWIII is coming” and may have already begun, while his ninth assumption is that “censorship and digital control will enter a new phase” that includes “debanking.”

Casey’s 10th assumption is that the “U.S. election – regardless of the outcome – is an inflection point and potentially a flash point,” and he’s not even sure there will be a 2024 election.

Last and unfortunately not least, “There is a war happening today” and “it’s a war on us.” Casey writes, “If/When we see a move toward kinetic force, we should be alarmed because we will have entered a new and more dangerous phase.”


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Check out these TERRIFYING predictions that are coming TRUE



World leaders recently gathered in India for this year's G20 summit and produced a document that is essentially the Great Reset on steroids.

The document could have been written by Glenn Beck himself, who reviews the G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration and realizes he’s made 10 of these same predictions in his new book, “Dark Future” — and that’s not a good thing.

Glenn says the G20 is making an “international commitment to dramatically scale back the use of private and public lands,” as well as "restoring by 2030 at least 30% of all degraded ecosystems and scaling up the efforts to achieve land degredation neutrality" and "halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030."

“This would mean not only the end of land development, but also the return of land that’s currently occupied by humans to nature," Glenn says. Glenn is disturbed but not surprised, noting, “They’re not gonna do anything with it; they’re just going to return it to its natural, utopian, you know, Garden of Eden state.”

“This is what we warned about in ‘Dark Future.’ In fact, I wouldn’t mind just calling these the top 10 things that we told you about in ‘Dark Future’ that are now happening,” he adds.

The third point Glenn describes is “a plan for international governance for AI,” which would ensure that “AI is developed responsibly, which means, among other things, designers take ethics and biases into account.”

“So, in other words, we hate conservatives. Let’s put that into the machine,” Glenn jokes, adding that “this is a way for them to use AI now, globally, to promote ESG, DEI, and other social justice.”

Glenn describes a further goal of “promoting AI that is designed to accomplish the United Nations' sustainable development goals.”

Glenn also predicted the expansion of the international tax system and building a publicly regulated, controllable, digital public infrastructure as well as additional regulations for cryptocurrencies, which also make an appearance in the document.

Glenn describes the G20 goal of “increasing social protection programs like universal health care and implementing policies to make social security benefits portable between nations.”

One of the most alarming goals concerns the World Health Organization. “Enhancing the power of the World Health Organization in future pandemics and public health emergencies,” Glenn describes.

Glenn says these world leaders also plan to put trillions into new climate-related spending programs as well as ensuring collaboration and research for introduction and adoption of central bank digital currencies.

Glenn notes that despite the dystopian nature of this list, we shouldn’t worry. Because as we’ve all been told so many times, no matter how many world leaders spell out their plans for us, it’s apparently nothing but “a conspiracy theory.”


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Beware The ‘Big Brother’ Digital Dollar That Will Take Your Freedom

A Central Bank Digital Currency is high on the list of authoritarian nightmares that might happen in a second Biden administration.

What Will America Be Like Under Biden’s Digital Dollar? Look At Communist China

Biden’s executive order gave the game away by stating that a U.S. digital dollar must ensure 'financial inclusion and equity' and monitor or mitigate 'climate change and pollution.'

Joe Rogan and Post Malone sound off on central bank digital currencies: 'No f***ing way. ... That's checkmate.'



Joe Rogan and musician Post Malone discussed the dangers of cash-killing central bank digital currencies on the Aug. 8 episode of the "Joe Rogan Experience."

While Malone appeared cynical about the present financial system, intimating the state and powers that be already enjoy too much control over Americans' spending and finances, Rogan indicated it could get much worse.

When asked how he felt about CBDCs, Rogan fired back, saying, "No f***ing way. No way. That's what I think. That's checkmate. That's game over."

Malone agreed, "That is f***ing checkmate."

The push for CBDCs in the West and around the world has taken on new momentum in recent months.

TheBlaze previously reported that the International Monetary Fund is working on a platform to ensure interoperability between CBDCs, whereby central banks would control their respective vaporous fiat currencies but adopt a single global ledger and adhere to international standards.

The Biden administration hinted that it might be on board, noting in a September 2022 report that among the policy objectives for an American CBDC would be interoperability and transferability with the global financial system.

Last year, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell hyped the prospect of a U.S. CBDC, stating it could "potentially help maintain the dollar's international standing" and possibly "improve on an already safe and efficient domestic payments system."

The Federal Reserve's 2022 paper, "Money and Payments: The U.S. Dollar in the Age of Digital Transformation," cited the adoption of CBDCs as a way toward greater inclusivity, stating, "A CBDC could reduce common barriers to financial inclusion and could lower transaction costs, which could be particularly helpful for lower-income households."

Nationally syndicated radio host and co-founder of Blaze Media Glenn Beck underscored earlier this year that the problem with a CBDC is that "there is no physical cash. There’s even [a physical aspect] with Bitcoin — you can take it on a thumb drive and you stick it in your pocket, or you can move it from one off-ramp to another. Just memorize your seed phrase, that’s all … but it’s yours."

Conversely, with a CBDC, it's only electronic, "only in the Federal Reserve System," noted Beck.

Extra to stressing that the "federal government has no authority to unilaterally establish a central bank currency," Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) has made clear that even if it did, it would be a bad idea.

Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has indicated this bad idea is ultimately "about surveillance and control."

Accordingly, he has banned CBDCs in Florida and told Tucker Carlson that as president, he would "nix central bank digital currency. Done. Dead. Not happening in this country," reiterating that it is a "massive threat to American liberty."

Building on his response to Malone, Rogan warned there will inevitably be trouble if "they apply [CBDCs] to a social credit score — if they decide somehow or another that you need some social credit score system and it's for the benefit of society — and they outline that they can track your behavior and your tweets and all your things, and you get a score."

Nigel Farage, the former English politician who proved instrumental in the 2020 restoration of British sovereignty via Brexit, was recently debanked by a giant British financial organization over his tweets and un-woke views.

Farage, having seen firsthand what traditional banks are already willing to do to conservatives with allegedly unacceptable views, made a similar claim to Rogan in a video Sunday, noting that the push "towards a cashless society" will likely usher in "a social credit system where only if you obey the prevailing orthodoxy of the day can you take part in life."

Malone told Rogan that ship has sailed — that social credit scores are already here, "they just haven't released the f***ing report cards. They didn't send the report cards home to the parents yet. ... Everything is already imprinted. Everything is already tracked. Everything is already there."

Rogan contended that the technocrats set upon the elimination of cash and regulation of behavior "just can't control you to the same extent that they would like. And what they would like to do is to strip you of your money and to be able to lock you down and then make sure you comply."

Outside communist-controlled China, this tactic has already been used to great effect in Canada under the Trudeau government.

Canadian banks in concert with the Trudeau government began freezing accounts of people linked to the trucker demonstrations as a means to snuff out the peaceful populist protest, which was critical of vaccine mandates.

Rogan indicated that the state's ability to make examples of dissenters by stripping them of their money will preclude others from standing up: "They don't want everything they worked for just be taken away instantly overnight and be powerless. No one to call. No one's going to answer your phone. They just decided you f***ed up, and the rules are the rules."

Beyond just eliminating dissent, the podcast host indicated that state actors will ultimately abuse this ability upon realizing they can fill their coffers and pockets with Americans' confiscated digital currencies.

A February CATO study highlighted that in addition to CBDCs enabling governments to freeze someone's financial resources with greater ease and speed, having established "a direct line between citizens and the government itself," policymakers would be able to set negative interest rates, thereby forcing spending by causing people to lose money.

The study also highlighted how the government would be positioned to bar people from spending their money on certain goods or services.

Watch Rogan and Malone's CBDC conversation:

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FACT CHECK: No, The WEF Has Not Said CBDCs Must Be ‘Implanted Under Your Skin’ If You Want To Participate In Society

The claim stems from an article published on a website that is known for spreading 'fake news'