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.

Is Digital Gold The Solution To Democrats’ Digital Dollar?

Biden's executive order gives away the left’s objective. It says digital currency has 'profound implications for ... the ability to exercise human rights; financial inclusion and equity; and energy demand.'

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:

— (@)

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

EXCLUSIVE: Rep. Andy Ogles Moves To Ban Centralized Digital Currency

Republican Tennessee Rep. Andy Ogles will introduce legislation later Thursday that would prohibit the Federal Reserve from issuing a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). The Cease Orwellian Surveillance and Targeting (COST) Act of 2023, obtained exclusively by the Daily Caller, would also ban Americans from holding CBDCs issued by the U.S. or any other government. […]

'Done. Dead. Not happening in this country': DeSantis indicates he'd staunchly oppose central bank digital currency as president



Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who is currently one of the many GOP presidential primary candidates running for the Republican presidential nomination, has said that as president, he would put the kibosh on the idea of a central bank digital currency in the U.S.

During an interview with Tucker Carlson, DeSantis indicated that on day one as president, he would "nix central bank digital currency. Done. Dead. Not happening in this country," he declared. The governor described the concept of a CBDC as "a massive threat to American liberty."

DeSantis also noted during the interview that while he was already pro-life in the past, the experience of hearing his first child's heartbeat during an ultrasound had a significant impact on him.

The governor named China as the "top threat" the United States faces.

Tucker Carlson interviewed DeSantis and multiple other GOP presidential primary candidates during the FAMiLY Leadership Summit on Friday. Blaze Media teamed up with the FAMiLY Leader for the event.

Polls indicate that former President Donald Trump has a massive lead over the rest of the GOP presidential primary field with DeSantis trailing in a distant second place. Trump was not one of the candidates who participated in the forum on Friday.

DeSantis secured victory last year during Florida's 2022 gubernatorial primary. Prior to serving as governor of the Sunshine State, DeSantis served as a lawmaker in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Blaze Media Presents: The Summit, hosted by Tucker Carlson www.youtube.com

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

How elites will use ESG, AI & CBDCs to seize TOTAL CONTROL



You might not like or want ESG, but according to Maxine Waters, your opinion does not matter.

In an interview on CNBC this week, Waters said that it’s “unfortunate” ESG has become politicized, “because it’s inevitable that everyone is going to have to participate in dealing with it.”

Glenn Beck knew this was coming.

“It will be mandatory. You will have to participate in ESG. So everything they said about a conspiracy theory is now clearly off the table. They’re saying it. So you will have to deal with a social credit score.”

Kamala Harris was also recently recorded explaining that they plan to teach AI about ESG and teach the algorithms to look for things like equity, social justice, and environmental wrongs.

Where does this lead?

Beck says it will turn AI into “all-seeing, all-knowing policemen.”

This will, he believes, be inevitably linked to the U.S. central bank digital currency.

“So, tie this in. You’re going to have an ESG score. It’s going to be tied with AI watching you, and now a digital currency that is responsive to AI and those scores.”

Beck worries that this means they will be able to control the population’s purchases — and ultimately their lives — through social credit scores, AI, and CBDC.

“Federal bureaucrats could with a push of a few buttons make their little authoritarian dreams a reality.”

This means that no matter where you are, who you’re talking to, what you’re saying — you could be punished.

“If you think that I am exaggerating, you are sadly misled and misguided. It will gather all of the information automatically, and it will change your score in real time and you won’t be able to do things that you want to do.”

“So,” Beck continues, “today’s conspiracy theory is tomorrow’s absolute fact. And by tomorrow, you could be in a digital jail.”


Want more from Glenn Beck?

To enjoy more of Glenn’s masterful storytelling, thought-provoking analysis and uncanny ability to make sense of the chaos, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

Dark Future: Uncovering the Great Reset’s TERRIFYING Next Phase | Ep 288

Dark Future: Uncovering the Great Reset’s TERRIFYING Next Phase | Ep 288

IMF working on global platform and single ledger for all cash-killing national digital currencies



The International Monetary Fund is working on a platform to ensure interoperability between cash-killing central bank digital currencies.

Under the proposed common regulatory framework, central banks would control their respective CBDCs but adopt a single global ledger and adhere to international standards, thereby ensuring their digital currencies are not regionally fenced in, reported Reuters.

"CBDCs should not be fragmented national propositions," IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva told a conference attended Monday by various African banks in Morocco. "To have more efficient and fairer transactions we need systems that connect countries: We need interoperability. ... For this reason at the IMF, we are working on the concept of a global CBDC platform."

To avoid generating a vacuum that could be allegedly exploited by decentralized cryptocurrencies, Georgieva suggested it is prudent for the 114 central banks presently exploring the possibility of implementing CBDCs, including the "10 already crossing the finish line," to reflect on the possible advantages of going beyond their domestic employment. A failure to do so, she suggested, would otherwise mean the under-utilization of noncompliant nations' CBDCs and their transformation into "settlement blocks."

Georgieva stressed, "We will pursue relentlessly together" the development of CBDCs.

\u201c"At the IMF we are working hard on the concept of a global CBDC platform": IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva https://t.co/Py7JLMovuc\u201d
— Tim Hinchliffe (@Tim Hinchliffe) 1687184000
IMF officials at the conference in Morocco further claimed that globalized CBDCs would promote financial inclusion and make remittances cheaper, particularly when money transfers presently cost 6.3% or $44 billion annually.

Cointelegraph reported that the IMF's director of the monetary and capital markets department, Tobias Adrian, indicated the "cross-border
payments and contracting platform" would enable central banks to better intervene in foreign exchange markets, collect data on capital flows, and resolve disputes.

Adrian suggested in a corresponding June 19 IMF report that interoperability will depend upon the adoption of a shared international ledger where digital representations of central bank reserves in all currencies could be exchanged, adding that "the CBDC platform should not bar the private sector from operating its own ledgers offering settlement and programming functionalities."

The Biden White House released a report on an American CBDC in September, noting that among the policy objectives for a possible U.S. CBDC would be interoperability and transferability with the global financial system.

"The CBDC system should be appropriately interoperable. The CBDC system should, where appropriate and consistent with other policy priorities, facilitate transactions with other currencies and systems, such as physical cash, commercial bank deposits, CBDCs issued by other monetary authorities, and the global financial system," said the report. "The CBDC system should be designed to avoid risks of harm to the international monetary system and financial system."

The White House suggested that if the U.S. pursued a CBDC, "there could be many possible benefits, such as facilitating efficient and low-cost transactions, fostering greater access to the financial system, boosting economic growth, and supporting the continued centrality of the U.S. within the international financial system."

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is one of the more outspoken critics of an American CBDC.

TheBlaze previously reported that Cruz, who has argued the "federal government has no authority to unilaterally establish a central bank currency," has introduced legislation, (S.887), co-sponsored by Sens. Mike Braun (R-Ind.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), that would prevent the Federal Reserve from following the lead of totalitarian regimes like China in establishing a central bank digital currency. The bill notes that a CBDC would be used as a "financial surveillance tool by the federal government."

Some critics of the IMF's proposed platform reckon localized abuses would be globalized.

British entrepreneur and Bitcoin advocate Layah Heilpern claimed that under the proposed framework, "if you say the wrong thing in one country, you'll have nowhere to flee as they can switch your money off anywhere in the world in any jurisdiction," adding that this effort evidences a fear of losing financial control amid the emergence of decentralized cryptocurrencies.

The CATO Institute published a study in February that identified a number of faults with a CBDC, emphasizing that it would "most likely be the single largest assault to financial privacy since the creation of the Bank Secrecy Act and the establishment of the third-party doctrine."

The study indicated that a CBDC will make the process by which governments freeze someone's financial resources — as Canadian banks did in concert with the Trudeau government in its crackdown efforts on peaceful protesters in 2022 — easier and faster, having established "a direct line between citizens and the government itself."

A single global ledger may, to Heilpern's point, make extend the reach of various regimes.

Carol Roth, author of "You Will Own Nothing," noted earlier this year in TheBlaze, "Whether it is the Fed, the IMF, or otherwise, whoever controls the money controls your access to opportunities, your ability to access goods and services, and ultimately your life."

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!