Whenever the White House says it is working on a plan that would transform a vital part of the U.S. economy, and the administration does so with the “utmost urgency,” it goes without saying that the press should lend a close attention to what is going on. past.

Most importantly, the press should eagerly and comprehensively inform the public of the potential risks associated with such a proposal.

Unfortunately, that’s not happening today, and the effects of media neglect could be felt for decades.

On March 9, the Biden administration released a Executive Decree (EO) tasking a long list of federal agencies to study digital assets and come up with numerous reports on their use and proposals to regulate them. Much of the executive order focuses on cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and ethereum, which run on blockchain technology and have become increasingly popular with many investors and consumers in recent years.

But there is an even more important part of EO: President BidenJoe BidenRussian rocket attacks left five people injured in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv. If we deregister the IRGC, what will the dictators think? Biden to propose minimum tax on billionaires in MORE budget tasked the federal government and the Federal Reserve with laying the groundwork for a potential new U.S. currency, a digital dollar.

If the United States were to adopt a digital currency like the one discussed in Biden’s executive order, it would be one of the most dramatic expansions of federal power ever, one that could put individuals and businesses in grave danger of lose their social and economic status. freedoms.

Among other significant actions, the White House executive order directs several federal agencies, including the Treasury Department, to study the development of a new central bank digital currency (CBDC) and produce a report within 180 days following the EO discussing the potential risks and benefits of a digital dollar.

The order further directs the Treasury Department, the Attorney General’s Office, and the Federal Reserve to work together to produce a “legislative proposal” to create a digital currency within 210 days, or about seven months.

A digital dollar would not simply be a digital version of the existing US dollar, but rather an entirely new currency that, at least initially, would exist alongside the current currency. Similar to cash, the CBDC would be used to pay for goods and services and would likely be run by the Federal Reserve, the central bank of the United States.

Unlike today’s dollar, however, a central bank digital currency wouldn’t exist in physical form, meaning you couldn’t walk into a bank or ATM and withdraw it.

It is important to understand that the digital dollar would be do not be similar to cryptocurrencies like bitcoin. Cryptocurrencies run on blockchain technology, which is decentralized by design. No group or individual can truly control cryptocurrencies once they are released.

Digital dollars, on the other hand, would be traceable and programmable. The Federal Reserve (or other designated entity) would have the ability to create more digital dollars whenever it sees fit, and depending on how the legislation is drafted establishing the currency, the dollars could be formulated to have various rules and restrictions built into their design.

For example, a digital dollar could be designed to restrict the use of fossil fuels, to give bonuses to people who spend in particular businesses, to implement de facto price controls by prohibiting users from overspending on particular products, or even to redistribute wealth.

In a report on the development of a central bank digital currency released by the Federal Reserve in January, the Fed outlined some examples of possible “design choices” for a digital dollar, including that “a central bank could limit the amount of CBDC that an end user could hold.”

There are many reasons to believe that Biden’s plan for a digital dollar involves a design that will give the federal government and/or the Federal Reserve control of much of society and the economy.

Biden’s executive order states that the CBDC and other policies governing digital assets must mitigate “climate change and pollution” and promote “financial inclusion and equity.”

In fact, “financial inclusion” is mentioned five times in Biden’s order, and “equity” and “climate change” are mentioned four times each.

Moreover, in a background call with reporters about the executive order, a “senior administration official” (name oddly removed from White House transcript) promised that by creating a new digital currency, the Biden administration will “continue to partner with all stakeholders – including industry, labour, consumer and environmental groups, allies and international partners.

Why would unions, industry organizations and environmental groups be involved in the development of a new currency – unless, of course, there is a plan to program that currency to advance various causes that are close to our hearts? special interest groups?

Even more amazingly, in a 2021 Q&A session on the development of a digital dollar, David Andolfatto, senior vice president and research division economist at the St. Louis Fed, was asked, if the Fed could “assure us [the public] that these digital currencies will never be used to tell us when, how and where our money can be spent? »

“In life, you can’t give absolute assurances about anything,” Andolfatto replied before suggesting that “the best we can hope for” is for Congress to “address the concerns of the electorate” about life. private.

If the Fed has no intention of using a future central bank digital currency to control Americans’ behavior, Andolfatto’s response is incredibly bizarre to say the least.

It is clear that the Biden administration and the Fed are working together to create a controllable, traceable and programmable digital currency. And if they succeed, life in America may never be the same again.

justin Haskins ([email protected]) is director of the Socialism Research Center at the Heartland Institute and co-author of the New York Times bestseller “The Great Reset: Joe Biden and the Rise of 21st Century Fascism.”