In the 1980s, as the crack cocaine epidemic was pulverizing the country, First Lady Nancy Reagan launched her famous "just say no" campaign, intended to discourage experimental drug use among young Americans.
Today, the nation faces a threat far greater than crack cocaine, and no, I am not referring to the huge rise in fentanyl poisonings. Instead, I am bringing attention to the stealth campaign in place to upend our financial system, individual liberties, and personal privacy rights via the introduction of a Federal Reserve-sponsored central bank digital currency (CBDC).
Although most Americans are not well-aware of what a CBDC is and what a government roll-out of one would look like, this issue certainly should be on Americans' radar, at least those who value their constitutional rights and limited government.
In short, a CBDC, as currently being pursued by the Biden administration, would fundamentally transform the social contract that the nation was founded upon. If the CBDC supporters have their way, the federal government would have the power to trace all transactions, "program" the currency, and manipulate said currency whenever it sees fit.
As my colleague, Justin Haskins, points out, "A programmable CBDC would allow government officials, the Federal Reserve, or another designated organization to track all spending activity for every CBDC user." Yikes!
Moreover, as Haskins notes, "A programmable CBDC would be designed with features that could be used by government or its partners to limit users' commercial activities. And, perhaps most ominously, the "Biden administration has already stated that if a CBDC were created in the United States, it should be designed so that it promotes social and environmental causes the White House favors, including 'equity,' 'financial inclusion,' and battling 'climate change and pollution.'"
In other words, if a CBDC comes into being, you can kiss your freedom goodbye, forever.
So, what can be done to stop the implementation of a CBDC? Fortunately, several options exist, and many are being pursued by those who are adamantly opposed to a CBDC.
For starters, several Republican senators, including Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), have recently introduced a bill that would outright ban the enactment of a CBDC.
According to Cruz, "The federal government has no authority to unilaterally establish a central bank currency. This bill goes a long way in making sure big government doesn't attempt to centralize or control cryptocurrency and instead, allows it to thrive in the United States. We should be empowering entrepreneurs, enabling innovation, and increasing individual freedom—not stifling it."
While a bill that would ban a CBDC at the federal level would likely nip it in the bud, the odds of a bill like this becoming law over the next two years, while President Biden remains in the Oval Office, are slim to none.
Yet, there are other avenues to pursue in the quest to avert a CBDC. For instance, we've seen many Republican governors, such as South Dakota's Kristi Noem and Florida's Ron DeSantis, support bills that would prevent or outlaw a CBDC.
Perhaps one of the easier ways to prevent the mass implementation of a CBDC would be to amend the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC).
Per the Uniform Law Commission's (ULC) website, "The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) is a comprehensive set of laws governing all commercial transactions in the United States. It is not a federal law, but a uniformly adopted state law."
Formed in 1896, the ULC's mission is simple: "create uniform commercial laws" because, "Uniformity of law is essential … for the interstate transaction of business." Over the years, the UCC has been updated periodically, as new technologies and innovations have been introduced that have necessitated amendments. In general, most of these amendments have improved the business climate by increasing efficiency.
However, in 2022, amendments were introduced to the UCC that would have an enormous effect on the country, far outside the realm of optimizing interstate transactions.
Once again, as Haskins notes, "The 2022 amendments to the UCC also include language that unnecessarily encourages the adoption of a central bank digital currency (CBDC), by laying the foundation for the use of CBDCs in commercial transactions. Further, the 2022 amendments do nothing to fix the existing parts of the code that already support the use of CBDCs."
In other words, if the proposed amendments go through, the groundwork for a CBDC will be put in place, even though Congress never voted on such a monumental change.
Fortunately, all is not lost. Commonsense amendments could be added to the UCC that would effectively prevent the Federal Reserve from rolling out a CBDC. According to Haskins, "The UCC does need to be amended, but it shouldn't be altered until those revisions include protections against the use of CBDCs. Without such protections, states would be putting the privacy and liberties of their citizens in grave danger."
At this point, we know one thing for sure: the Biden administration is chomping at the bit to rollout a CBDC because it would vastly increase the power of the federal government, allow it to surveil Americans, and "nudge" individuals' activities and behaviors. Yet, we also know, based on recent polling, that Americans are overwhelmingly opposed to, and deeply suspicious of, a CBDC.
Stay tuned, as this issue is unlikely to go away anytime soon. However, if a CBDC does appear on the horizon, do one very simple thing: "just say no."
