Ron Paul: 'My intention is to get rid of the Fed'

The end of the Federal Reserve is the ultimate goal of an audit of that institution, Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) said Monday.

Paul, the sponsor of a resolution seeking an audit of the Fed, conceded that his ultimate goal is to end the monetary institution, with a hope that the audit would expose enough information for Americans to clamor for the board's end.

"My intention is to get rid of the Fed," Paul said during an interview on CNBC. "I don't say this is the step -- I mean, the whole purpose is to expose it."

The libertarian Republican, long an opponent of the kind of active monetary policy practiced by the Fed, said it would likely self-destruct under the weight of its own actions.

"I won't end the Fed; they're not going to pass a law to manage monetary policy or end the Fed -- that's not going to happen," Paul said. "But the Fed's going to self-destruct because they're going to destroy the dollar."

The House Financial Services Committee included Paul's proposal to audit the Fed, which has 313 cosponsors in the House, in its financial regulation overhaul.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has sponsored a related bill in the Senate, which has 30 cosponsors, though some senators have blasted the proposal.

Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), the ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, called Paul's proposal "a dangerous move by this Congress to pander to the populist anger currently directed against our central bank" last week.

The Texas congressman responded to Gregg on Monday, arguing that Americans are behind an audit of the Fed.

"Pandering? Well in a sense, I do; I pander to the people, because it's the people who are behind this thing," Paul argued. "The Federal Reserve, they say they want 'independence.' Every time they say 'independence'...what they're talking about is secrecy. What I'm talking about is transparency."

---