HOW I SEE IT: Our great nation is headed for bankruptcy

United we stand — we always have! Unfortunately, heavy taxation and debt seriously threaten our cornerstone of American life now.

I saw a flyer a few weeks ago promoting TEA parties that asked the question, “What would the Founding Fathers do?” Their writings offer us some answers. Thomas Jefferson wrote this:

“I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies. If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around (the banks) will deprive the people of all property until their children wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered. The issuing power should be taken from the banks and restored to the people, to whom it properly belongs.”

Jefferson and later Andrew Jackson made it their mission to eliminate the “First” and “Second Bank of the United States.” Now we have the Federal Reserve, which is not federal and has no reserves.

The name of the bank is only the beginning of the deception! All of these banks were and are private. Why on earth did we give the power of the U.S. Treasury to a private bank to create our money out of nothing and then charge us interest on this money?

Annual debt interest cost to U.S. taxpayers is now over $1 trillion! Our Founding Fathers recognized this danger and strongly opposed central banking. ...

Our biggest tax is inflation. It robs our hard-earned savings and dollar denominated investments. Taxpayers fear audits, while the Fed has never been audited. Support HR 1207 to audit the Fed; 58 congressmen co-sponsor it now. Does your congressman?

Bloomberg Financial reported that in the past six months the U.S. government and the Federal Reserve have spent, lent or committed $12.8 trillion to stem this “recession.” We were told that the bad subprime mortgages caused the financial mess we find ourselves in now; $12.8 trillion would pay off all mortgages, credit card debt and college loans!

Are we being taken for fools? The current annual U.S. GDP is $13 trillion, and our federal government just spent almost that much in six months.

In the first quarter of 2008, the Chinese purchased a massive 74.7 percent of our $205.9 billion in deficit spending for that period. In the first quarter of 2009, the Chinese purchased a mere 2.7 percent of our $276.3 billion deficit for the period.

So, who is buying the treasury bonds now? The Federal Reserve! That’s right, basically Peter is creating money from nothing and using it to pay Paul. Historically, in other nations using fiat money, actions like this occurred just before their currency collapsed.

The economic facts are simple:

- You cannot cut taxes unless you cut spending.

- You cannot cut spending unless you address the Federal Reserve system that enables the runaway spending and debt.

- You cannot address the Federal Reserve system unless you audit the Federal Reserve.
McDonnell, a resident of Culpeper, gave this speech at last week’s TEA party. He can be reached at