 By Ron Paul There is a lot to cheer about when it comes to most of President Trump's foreign policy statements. He regularly tells us he is ending foreign wars and bringing troops home. But do the people who work for him even listen? It seems as soon as the president makes a strong foreign policy statement, one of his appointees grabs a microphone to explain what the president “really meant.” Earlier this month, President Trump Tweeted that, “we should have the small remaining number of our BRAVE Men and Women serving in Afghanistan home by Christmas!” It was a very encouraging statement. But almost immediately his statement was “clarified” – actually refuted – by two Administration officials. First, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army Gen. Mark Milley, directly contradicted his boss – who also happens to be his Commander-in-Chief - stating, “It’s a conditions-based plan. We’re continuing to monitor those conditions.” Then President Trump’s National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien told us that the president’s statement was merely an expression of his “desire.” “All presidents, all GIs, want the troops home by Christmas,” he said on Friday. Then Milley and O’Brien launched a war of words against each other over troop withdrawal, with Milley attacking O’Brien’s “clarification” that 2,500 troops would remain in Afghanistan until at least early next year. Milley called it “speculation.” O’Brien fought back, stating that it “has been suggested by some that that’s speculation. I can guarantee you that’s the plan of the President of the United States.” It’s hard to follow! While President Trump’s statement on bringing the troops home is to be applauded, he has a real problem getting his policies implemented by the very people he has hired to do the implementing. It has long been said that “the personnel is the policy,” and we have seen this very clearly in this administration. President Trump ran on a sensible foreign policy, defining “America first” as getting the US out of endless and counterproductive wars. Many, me included, believe this position may have provided his margin of victory. The “peace candidate” nearly always wins. But you cannot pursue an “America first” foreign policy if you put people like Mike Pompeo, John Bolton, Nikki Haley, Mark Milley, and others in charge of carrying it out. They simply won’t do it. We are seeing that again when it comes to withdrawing our troops from the long and foolish war in Afghanistan. For a president once made famous for uttering the line “you’re fired,” Trump seems unwilling or perhaps unable to dismiss those who actively seek to undermine his policies. There is no need for endless negotiations with the Taliban on what the country might look like or should look like when we get out. The only way to get out of Afghanistan is to just get out of Afghanistan. To just come home. Nineteen years fighting a losing battle to re-shape a country thousands of miles away about which the “experts” know nothing is more than enough. But if there is ever a “danger” of a war coming to a close, Washington’s warmongers are right there trying to stir up another conflict. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said late last week that would like to see huge military spending increases to counter the “threat” of Russia and China. Robbing Middle America to enrich the millionaires in the military-industrial complex seems to be the one issue universally supported in Washington. But it is not at all what the American people want. Will Trump have another chance to pursue an actual “America first” foreign policy? Soon we will know… 
Speaking on a conference call yesterday, President Trump made what appears to be a final and irreversible break with the "lockdown" and "facemask" policies of Anthony Fauci and the rest of the Covid "experts" who have spent the past half year or so attacking civil liberties in the name of fighting a virus. Will this last-minute attack on Fauci and all the other "idiots who got it wrong" pay dividends as the campaign winds toward the finish? Plus today: Dallas Morning News runs pro-Great Barrington Declaration op-ed: is the tide finally turning?
By Chris Rossini
America has a major imperialist mindset problem. Attempting to force one's way of living on others has caused tremendous turmoil, both around the world, and here at home. The two major parties have been consumed with imperialism for a very long time; at least 100 years. Republicans have a tendency to want to impose upon people in foreign nations, while Democrats tend to want to impose upon people in America. The dividing lines are by no means clear-cut though. Many of the biggest warmongers in American history have been Democrats, and many of the biggest domestic oppressors have been Republicans. So there's plenty of overlap. In any case, "Live and let live" is not on the agenda of either party, where "Live as I tell you to live" is. Of course, imperialism always has to be dressed up. It must be wrapped in fluffy humanitarian terms. But the aggressive and forceful means that are used are anything but humanitarian. The results are predictably disastrous and the reason is due to a fundamental lack of understanding (or stubborn rejection) of human nature. No one wants to be imposed upon. We are each free and sovereign individuals, endowed with the responsibility of making our own choices. That's what makes life so special. Human beings are not homogeneous. Our ability to think, value, and choose whatever we want is the essence of being human! When someone attempts to impose on that essence, the guard goes up! When someone attempts to bully and force their ideas on us, resistance to the idea is automatic. It doesn't matter what the idea is. Force breeds resistance. It's cause and effect. However, when someone attempts to persuade us with their ideas peacefully, and leaves the decision up to us, we contemplate and evaluate the idea. We may even choose to adopt it. But we must adopt it by our own volition. That's how real and lasting change and improvement occurs -- voluntarily! That's the natural order of things. We didn't create that order, nor will anyone re-create a new order. Real and lasting change happens by voluntary choice. This is why the ideas of Liberty are rooted-in and rest upon a foundation of non-aggression. Every true champion of Liberty, where the flame burns in them like an inferno, understands that Liberty cannot and will not be imposed on others by force. Champions of Liberty merely share the ideas in a peaceful manner, and then let go. It's up to the listener to decide what to do with it. Try to impose Liberty by force, and the imposed up will end up hating you and rebelling against you. Try to impose any idea by force, and the results will be exactly the same...hatred and rebellion. The United States government, with its two imperialist parties, have created incredible amounts of hatred around the world, as well as here at home. The causes are the same. The effects are the same. Force breeds resistance. It's time to ditch the imperialist mindset. It's done nothing but cause misery and trouble.
Deja vu! Once again those Russians have come through to plant disinformation during a US presidential campaign! This time they are accused of being involved with Biden's son Hunter's laptop. Rep. Adam Schiff claims he's as sure about Russian activity this time as he was sure of Trump collusion with Russia last time. How did that one work out? Also today, White House top Covid advisor Dr. Scott Atlas has his Tweets yanked - more politicization of science? And...the California governor does not want you to sing.
Individual Liberty and Big Government are mutually exclusive. When America largely operated under a Constitutional government, the American middle class was awe-inspiring. Now, with a Constitution that is ignored, and with the biggest government to ever exist, the American middle class is disappearing.
The social media suppression of an investigative report in the New York Post about the business dealings of Joe Biden's son, with conservatives pointing out the double standards and biases of these companies' policies. Are they right? Is there a solution? Plus today: Scott Gottlieb and crony capitalism, Gov. Newsom on the hot-seat, and strong words from Judge Napolitano...
Yesterday's appearance of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) on Wolf Blitzer's CNN news program was one of the most astonishing moments in television news history. What led Pelosi to go completely off the rails at Wolf, accusing him of being a shill for the Republican Party and of not caring about people in need? What's going on here? Also today, Dr. Scott Atlas has stinging words for lockdowners, Houston's mayor again moves the goalposts as the infection rate drops, Bill Gates warns that we cannot be normal again until a "super-vaccine" arrives, and an update on Michigan.
Support the Ron Paul Institute and Receive Free Gift of Ron Paul's NEW Mini-Book! Click here for details: https://bit.ly/317UaD3  By Chris Rossini Let's say you sit down, grab your AppleTV or Amazon Fire TV remote, and turn on your favorite program. Do you know the exact details on how everything 'just happens' when you press those buttons on the remote? Most likely not. People with the technical knowledge can surely explain it to you. Do you have a few years to spare? They can get into the nitty-gritty of the science and physics involved. But you most likely have no interest in being put to sleep with such tedious minutia. You just want to hit the buttons, and when you hit them you have faith that everything will work. But what if you didn't have that faith? What if you insisted on knowing every single detail of how it works before pressing those buttons? Even worse, what if you were afraid to press the buttons unless you understood every fine detail? What if you feared that the remote would explode in your hands by pressing the buttons? Or what if you were afraid that the TV would melt into a molten liquid? But you're not afraid. You know it works; you have no idea how it works, but you have faith that it will. Part of being an individual human being is having limited knowledge. That's our nature. Omniscience is not for us. We cannot, and will not, know everything there is to know. We have to have faith in order to live. No matter how smart we think we are, no matter how brilliant our Moms or professors said that we are, we each know very, very little. We may know much more than most people in a specific field, but we cannot know it all, and when we step out of that field, we place our faith in the specialized knowledge of others. I can't explain to you the details of exactly how a car can get me from A to B. I can't explain how the lights come on when I flip the switch. I can't explain how a pencil is made, or how Chik-fil-A always has enough chicken to supply the lines of cars that wrap around their building all day long. I do know that, because of the division of labor and specialization, all of these things just work. And in my perpetual ignorance, I'm able to enjoy all of it! In all of these fields, I know that others can explain the details to me, but our time on this Earth is short. There isn't enough time for everyone to explain everything. Here's the beauty of living in a world filled with largely ignorant individuals with specialized knowledge: While others will specialize for me, I specialize for them. I (and people much smarter than me in my field) can explain why the ideas of freedom and liberty are far superior to busybody bureaucrats and authoritarian governments. We can explain why government hurts, rather than helps, when it intervenes and tries to regulate something as infinitely complex as human life and civilization. We can explain why governments can't 're-make' society, or 're-make' other countries, or 're-make' human nature. I may not know the intricate laws of physics, but I can explain the economic laws that busybody bureaucrats are always trying to break, and always fail to break. Politicians may claim that they will break the laws of supply and demand, but they won't. They may claim that they can give stuff away for "free," but they can't. Again, because time is limited, people don't necessarily want to hear the explanations on why all of this is so. It's only when the pain of government intervention becomes overwhelming that the demand for the ideas of freedom and liberty increases rapidly. When the bureaucrat has his boot on your throat, and your nose grinding in the dirt, the ideas of freedom (all of a sudden) become very attractive. The bottom line is this: Every aspect of living is based on faith. That includes a faith in the ideas of freedom. Let's say we were to live in a perfectly free, peaceful and libertarian society, which is most unlikely since freedom naturally includes the freedom to choose tyranny... So let's go with this instead... Let's say we were to live in a society where the ideas of freedom dominate....In that environment, most people would be operating on faith in freedom. They would know that freedom works (just like they know the AppleTV remote works) but they wouldn't necessarily be able to explain exactly how it works, in every detail. Others, who have the knowledge, would certainly be able to explain why freedom works, but most people wouldn't be able to. They have their own areas of specialization. There's not enough time. So they will operate on faith that freedom works. And freedom does, without a doubt, work. 
The Trump/Fauci feud is heating up, as Fauci is furious about being featured in a campaign ad and Trump slams his pitching and prognostications. Fauci fired back by claiming that Trump's campaign rallies are dangerous virus spreading events. Is this the end for "Deep State" Fauci? Also today...are people getting Covid twice? Plus, a vaccine setback - what does it mean?
By Ron Paul
House Financial Services Chair Maxine Waters and Senator Elizabeth Warren have introduced the Federal Reserve Racial and Economic Equity Act. This legislation directs the Federal Reserve to eliminate racial disparities in income, employment, wealth, and access to credit. Eliminating racial disparities in access to credit is code for forcing banks and other financial institutions to approve loans based on the applicants’ race, instead of based on their income and credit history. Overlooking poor credit history or income below what would normally be required to qualify for a loan results in individuals ending up with ruinous debt. These individuals will end up losing their homes, cars, or businesses because banks disregarded sound lending practices in an effort to show they are meeting race-based requirements. Forcing banks to make loans based on political considerations damages the economy by misallocating resources. This reduces economic growth and inflicts more pain on lower-income Americans. The Carter-era Community Reinvestment Act has already shown what happens when the government forces banks to give loans to unqualified borrowers. This law played a significant role in the housing boom and subsequent economic meltdown. The Federal Reserve Racial and Economic Equity Act will be the Community Reinvestment Act on steroids. This legislation also requires the Fed to shape monetary policy with an eye toward eliminating racial disparities. This adds a third mandate to the Fed’s current “dual mandate” of promoting a stable dollar and full employment. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has already publicly committed to using racial disparities as an excuse to continue the Fed’s current policy of perpetual money creation. Since inflation occurs whenever the Fed creates new money, Powell and his supporters want a policy of never-ending inflation. Supporters of this scheme say that inflation raises wages and creates new job opportunities for those at the bottom of the economic ladder. However, these wage gains are illusory, as wages rarely, if ever, increase as much as prices. So, workers’ real standard of living declines even as their nominal income increases. By contrast, those at the top of the income ladder tend to benefit from inflation as they receive the new money — and thus an increase in purchasing power — before the Fed’s actions cause a general rise in the price level. The damage done by inflation is hidden and regressive, which is part of why the inflation tax is the most insidious of all taxes. When the Fed creates new money, it distorts the market signals sent by interest rates, which are the price of money. This leads to a bubble. Many people who find well-paying jobs in bubble industries will lose those jobs when the bubble inevitably bursts. Many of these workers, and others, will struggle because of debt they incurred because they listened to “experts” who said the boom would never end. The Federal Reserve’s manipulation of the money supply lowers the dollar’s value, creates a boom-and-bust business cycle, facilitates the rise of the welfare-warfare state, and enriches the elites, while impoverishing people in the middle and lower classes. Progressives who want to advance the wellbeing of people in the middle and lower classes should stop attacking free markets and join libertarians in seeking to restore a sound monetary policy, The first step is to let the people know the full truth about the central bank by passing the Audit the Fed bill. Once the truth about the Fed is exposed, a critical mass of people will join the liberty movement and force Congress to end the Fed’s money monopoly. |
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