Ron Paul Liberty Report - Weekly Update -- Government Gaslights People about the Economy
Aired: 2024-10-29
Duration: 05:06


=== Government Gaslights People About the Economy (03:29) ===

[00:00:00]  Hello everybody and thank you for tuning in to the weekly report.
[00:00:04]  Government Gaslights People About the Economy.
[00:00:08]  Public opinion polls consistently show the economy is one of the top issues, if not the top issue, for American voters.
[00:00:17]  This may strike some as odd since official government statistics show low unemployment and declining price inflation, suggesting the Federal Reserve has engineered a soft landing, bringing down inflation without causing a recession.
[00:00:35]  So why the concern over the economy?
[00:00:37]  One reason is more people are realizing government economic figures hide the truth about the economy.
[00:00:46]  Recession since 2022, U.S. economic income and output have fallen overall for four years is a Brownstone Institute research paper by E.J. Antoni, a research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, and Dr. Peter St. Ange, a fellow with the Mises Institute.
[00:01:08]  It details how the federal government understates inflation while making wages, prices, and profits economic growth appear stronger.
[00:01:20]  Dr. Antonio and Dr. St. Ons used a more accurate measure of inflation than that used by government to uncover the true state of the economy.
[00:01:31]  Their calculations show that the U.S. economy has been in recession since 2022.
[00:01:39]  The government claims that GDP increased by approximately 13.7% from 2019 through the first half of 2024.
[00:01:52]  When the more accurate inflation number is used, the result is a 2.5% decline in the GDP.
[00:02:01]  The federal government's figures also show the American people's disposable income increased by 12.9% from 2019 through the first half of 2024.
[00:02:14]  However, when the more accurate way of calculating price inflation is used, it shows Americans' disposable income declined by 2.3%.
[00:02:26]  Dr. Antonio and Dr. St. Ans are hardly the first to expose how the government uses doctored statistics to make the economy look stronger.
[00:02:38]  John Williams' shadow stats has regularly shown how government manipulates data to underreport unemployment and price inflation.
[00:02:50]  Government distortions of economic data mislead the people regarding the true state of the economy.
[00:02:56]  They also mislead Congress, the President, and maybe even the Federal Reserve.
[00:03:01]  Until the Audit the Fed bill becomes law, we will not know for sure what data the central bank relies on.
[00:03:10]  Making economic policy decisions based on flawed data enables politicians to ignore the dangers posed by Congress's refusal to cut federal spending.
[00:03:23]  Government spending puts pressure on the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates low.

=== Dollar's World Reserve Status (01:37) ===

[00:03:29]  The Federal Reserve can keep interest rates low because the dollar's World Reserve currency status guarantees a strong demand for U.S. dollars.
[00:03:40]  A growing number of countries, though, are seeking alternatives to the dollar.
[00:03:46]  One reason for this is resentment over the U.S. government's use of the dollar's World Reserve currency status to force other countries to abide by U.S. demands.
[00:03:59]  Saudi Arabia is moving away from exclusively using dollars for its oil trade.
[00:04:05]  The petro-dollar is a major reason the dollar has been able to maintain its world reserve currency status.
[00:04:14]  If the dollar loses its world reserve currency status, America would face a major economic crisis.
[00:04:22]  This crisis could lead to the collapse of the welfare warfare state and the fiat monetary system that makes it possible.
[00:04:32]  The danger is the replacement could be even worse as a frightened populace turns toward an authoritarian promise of security in exchange for restriction of liberty.
[00:04:46]  However, the collapse could also result in a turn toward respect for the principles of liberty, limited government, free markets, and a foreign policy of peace and free trade.
[00:04:59]  Those who know the truth must continue to educate our fellow citizens about the benefits of liberty.