Ron Paul Dear Colleague on Asian Bailout Winners & Losers
Ron Paul Dear Colleague on Asian Bailout Winners & Losers
January 28, 1998
(J. Bradley Jansen was Ron Paul’s legislative staffer for these issues at this time)
The ABCs of the Asian Bailout Crises:
Winners & Losers
January 28, 1998
Dear Colleague:
Bailouts are supported by some and opposed by others. If one follows the money trail, it becomes easy to understand who supports and who opposes more bailout money. There are clear winners and losers in this charade of maintaining “financial stability.”
Who wins?
If we were to put purple dye on the money that we are sending to these countries in the bailouts today, the Wall Street fat cats will be walking around with Purple Pockets tomorrow. The money also funds lavish bailout bureaucracy salaries and corrupt foreign government officials–these groups argue for the gravy train to continue.
Bailout money insulates investors and bankers from their bad investment decisions and insulates corrupt rulers (who often plunder the economy for personal or familial gain, rape the environment, crush movements of laborers trying to express their right of voluntary association, and violate other human rights) from the people who seek a more responsive government.
Who loses?
The people of the bailed-out countries who work hard and save but have their earnings washed away by inflationary money expansion. With these fiat currency devaluations, the working people (who don’t have money in Swiss bank accounts or in other “hard” currencies or gold as their rulers do) have lost up to 80% or their savings and earnings (in U.S. dollar terms). Fuel and basic foodstuffs are now unaffordable for many of the working poor.
The US taxpayer has money deducted from their paychecks which is given to the IMF. Supporters claim that it is a neutral “exchange of assets,” but, in reality, it is far from neutral for the taxpayer. The taxpayer whose money is taken cannot go the IMF to pay for child care, education, food for children, mortgage, credit cards, student, or car loans.
Solid Majority of Americans Oppose More Bailout Money
For these easy to understand reasons, a solid majority of Americans oppose the Administration’s request to bail out the Asian economies. According to a Reuters poll released on January 22, 1998, a majority of respondents “disagreed with the White House’s controversial request seeking Congressional approval of some $19 billion of extra money” for the IMF.
Listen to the taxpayers NOT the purple-pocketed.
Oppose new funding for the IMF!
Sincerely,
Ron Paul