US Mint Claims NORFED Are Federal Criminals
In a stunning development in the private currency movement, the US Mint today announced that, along with clarifications about the private collectible medallions of other private mints not being US Mint issued, was the headline story that the Mint claims the Justice Department has declared that the National Organization for Repeal of the FEDeral Reserve Act (NORFED), its widely known Liberty Dollars, and anyone who uses Liberty Dollars in commercial transactions, is in violation of federal law.
Despite comments over the years from Treasury, Secret Service, and Federal Reserve officials that there was nothing illegal or wrong about the Liberty Dollar, the Mint claimed today that,
The Mint press release links to a warning of this and other federal laws being violated, which goes on to say that,
This challenge by the Mint is obviously a threat to private minters. The Mint has recently taken up a campaign to "warn" the public about the fact that many privately minted medallions are not US Mint issue. This is rather obviously a ploy to drive down the collectible value of these private coins and drive up the value of official US Mint specie coins.
A possible second consideration may be that the Liberty Dollar is a talisman of the libertarian, anti-tax "Patriots", anti-Federal Reserve, and other populist movements. That there are other private currencies in wide circulation in four states is not mentioned by the Mint.
NORFED shot back with its own press release, taking the chance to correct several errors of the Mint in its own press release, and challenging the Mint to a legal battle. NORFED states that:
This should be an interesting fight. With $20 million in private currency in circulation, NORFED is a small private currency today. Whether it can afford the legal costs of this David and Goliath fight remains to be seen.
NOTE: Those who wish to help support NORFEDs coming legal fight can make donations here at IntLib via any of the widgets found in the right hand column (Paypal, NORFED eALD, or ChipIn). Please include a note that this money is intended for NORFEDs legal costs.
UPDATE:
Despite comments over the years from Treasury, Secret Service, and Federal Reserve officials that there was nothing illegal or wrong about the Liberty Dollar, the Mint claimed today that,
"Under 18 U.S.C. § 486, it is a Federal crime to pass, or attempt to pass, any coins of gold or silver intended for use as current money except as authorized by law. According to the NORFED website, "Liberty merchants" are encouraged to accept NORFED "Liberty Dollar" medallions and offer them as change in sales transactions of merchandise or services."
The Mint press release links to a warning of this and other federal laws being violated, which goes on to say that,
"Second, the advertisements confusingly refer to NORFED "Liberty Dollar" medallions as "legal" and "constitutional." However, under the Constitution ( Article I, section 8, clause 5 ), Congress has the exclusive power to coin money of the United States and to regulate its value. By statute ( 31 U.S.C. § 5112(a) ), Congress specifies the coins that the Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to mint and issue and requires the Secretary to carry out these duties at the United States Mint (31 U.S.C. § 5131). Accordingly, the United States Mint is the only entity in the United States with the lawful authority to mint and issue legal tender United States coins."Note the reference to the Constitution. What is obvious to scholars is that the Mint incorrectly quotes the Constitution (which does not say "exclusive), which does NOT give congress any exclusivity in its power to coin money, it only says they are empowered to do so, not that anyone else can't. Here are the actual words,
"The Congress shall have Power To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;."This open interpretation has been upheld by Treasury and Secret Service officials for many years.
- US Constitution, Article I, section 8, clause 5
This challenge by the Mint is obviously a threat to private minters. The Mint has recently taken up a campaign to "warn" the public about the fact that many privately minted medallions are not US Mint issue. This is rather obviously a ploy to drive down the collectible value of these private coins and drive up the value of official US Mint specie coins.
A possible second consideration may be that the Liberty Dollar is a talisman of the libertarian, anti-tax "Patriots", anti-Federal Reserve, and other populist movements. That there are other private currencies in wide circulation in four states is not mentioned by the Mint.
NORFED shot back with its own press release, taking the chance to correct several errors of the Mint in its own press release, and challenging the Mint to a legal battle. NORFED states that:
"We privately mint currency that is backed by gold and silver, not the United States Government. The designs and verbiage on our specie and certificate are original and are not copies of any US Mint currency.NORFED Executive Director Michael Johnson goes on to quote several Treasury and Federal Reserve officials, as seen here:
The Liberty Dollar began in 1998 and has been in circulation throughout the US for eight years. We have over 2500 Liberty Associates, 75 Regional Currency Offices, and thousands of Liberty Merchants accepting the Liberty Dollar. We have never been notified nor had suit brought by the US Department of Justice."
Claudia Dickens, spokeswoman for the U.S. Treasury Department's Bureau of Engraving and Printing, said American Liberty Currency is legitimate. "There's nothing illegal about this," Dickens said after the Treasury Department's legal team reviewed the currency. "As long as it doesn't say legal tender there's nothing wrong with it."Johnson likened his organizations legal struggle to the epic battle between Federal Express and the United States Postal Service, and predicts similar results: most priority and long distance USPS mail today is shipped by FedEx aircraft.
Andrew Williams, a spokesman for the Federal Reserve in Washington, D.C.: "There is no law that says goods and services must be paid for with Federal Reserve notes. Parties entering into a transaction can establish any medium of exchange that is agreed upon."
In addition, Art Rolnick, Director of Research for the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, in a January 2000 interview, stated "If these (NORFED) people want to issue their own money, so be it."
Also, throughout the years associates have been in contact with the Secret Service if someone called in to question the legitimacy of the Liberty Dollar. The Secret Service has never had a problem with us.
This should be an interesting fight. With $20 million in private currency in circulation, NORFED is a small private currency today. Whether it can afford the legal costs of this David and Goliath fight remains to be seen.
NOTE: Those who wish to help support NORFEDs coming legal fight can make donations here at IntLib via any of the widgets found in the right hand column (Paypal, NORFED eALD, or ChipIn). Please include a note that this money is intended for NORFEDs legal costs.
UPDATE:
posted by Mike Lorrey at 11:25 PM
23 Comments:
If you look at the U.S. mint press release, it seems that the problem that they have is not that the liberty dollar is being circulated as currency, but that it is being circulated as U.S. currency. It looks similar to silver dollars, has inscriptions on it like "trust in God," and resembles U.S. coin in enough ways that it would be possible to pass it off as actual U.S.-issued currency, though only morons would accept it as such. I think if NORFED were to change the design on the Liberty Dollar, and change the wording on the libertydollar.org website purporting to be "Real Money" (Which the Mint has misconstrued to mean "real U.S. money" rather than "money backed by something of value"), the Mint would probably back down.
Good question, Scott.
Lets look at the facts:
LD: "Trust in God"
US Mint: "In God We Trust"
Conclusion: Vaguely similar, but different to anybody who can read.
LD national identity: USA
US Mint coin identity: United States of America.
Conclusion: absolutely no US Mint coins use "USA"
LD front image: an original artistic rendition of the head of the Statue of Liberty, from the side (nobody owns the IP rights to the statue of liberty)
US Mint silver dollars: A walking liberty, with sunset and bouquet.
REVERSE IMAGE:
LD: torch of the statue of Liberty, with NORFED website
US Mint: Seal of the United States of America
It is quite clear that they are different, the US Secret Service has concluded it is different, the US Treasury has concluded it is Different, and the Federal Reserve System has concluded it is different.
I would just like to point out at this juncture that Disneyworld have for years been issuing "Disney Dollars" 1:1 for US$ for use in their parks and stores in the continental US and Puerto Rico.
They look to the average british 7 year old (at the time) like normal US bills, with the execption of Presidents Lincoln, Washington et al being replaced by Mickey Mouse's face.
This cant possibly be a case of double standards, can it?
NORFED is simply doing what the US Mint is refusing to do. If the people want Real silver and gold money that has a face value that allows it to be easily circulated then the Mint should listen to The People. If for some reason the Mint and its Crime bosses at the federal reserve think the people won't see through this phony warning, then they are more ignorant than I thought. Its just a simple case of MINT ENVY. Everyone get out there and support NORFED. They are trying to bring value back to the Worlds worst debtor nation. Boycott the US mint, buy private minted medallions and bars. Buy Liberty Dollars. Create your own local currency. Just stop using debt and try to avoid using Federal reserve notes. We will win this Global fight against tyranny If we all do our part.
Dollywood in Tennessee does the same with "Dolly Dollars."
"NOTE: Those who wish to help support NORFEDs coming legal fight can make donations here at IntLib via any of the widgets found in the right hand column (Paypal, NORFED eALD, or ChipIn). Please include a note that this money is intended for NORFEDs legal costs."
Will the lawyer's take Liberty dollars?
Paper checks aren't legal tender.
Credit/debit cards aren't legal tender.
Electronic transfers aren't legal tender.
Is it a crime to use those too?
What about gift certificates and coupons?
Will I be fined if I attempt to use those as well?
This is not legal advise, and I am not a lawyer:
18 U.S.C. §486 states (in its entirety):Uttering coins of gold, silver or other metal
"Whoever, except as authorized by law, makes or utters or passes, or attempts to utter or pass, any coins of gold or silver or other metal, or alloys of metals, intended for use as current money, whether in the resemblance of coins of the United States or of foreign countries, or of original design, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both."
This statute has not been heavily tested in court. However, there have been a few decisions (mostly on 18 USC §281, the previous version of the statute). In U.S. v. Gellman, 44 F.Supp. 360, a Federal District court in Minnesota said:
1. It doesn't matter whether or not the coins look like U.S. currency. The statute isn't about forgery, it's about creating currency.
2. Coins that are not for circulation as currency, and are marked thus, such as token, Disney Dollars, etc., are fine, because they are not intended to be circulated as currency.
That makes it sound like that what NORFED is doing is probably in violation of that statute, since they are promoting them as a currency to be used in the United States in competition with the national currency.
Now, if an area of the law is unclear, someone who finds himself in possible violation of the law can ask a government official for guidance, and if the official says "no, you're cool," then the person can use that as an affirmative defense in prosecution.
However, the government official has to be a certain official - generally the person most responsible for prosecuting the law. In this case, you would probably need a signed statement from Alberto Gonzales, or a former or future U.S. Attorney General, saying it was Ok. Secret Service might be okay, since they are in charge of investigating counterfeiting, but I wouldn't rely on that - it would be too easy for a court to choose to ignore it.
Just some facts and law for the discussion.
K
The press release didn't state the coins were illegal, but rather the use of them in open commercial transactions is the illegality.
As I am a Liberty Merchant, I will take care of the exchange...
I hope the Feds win this legal fight aginat NORFED. if they do then NORFED and others will then be able to use the Fed's own testimony to shutdown the Federal Reserve permanently.
to wit : " However, under the Constitution ( Article I, section 8, clause 5 ), Congress has the exclusive power to coin money of the United States and to regulate its value. By statute ( 31 U.S.C. § 5112(a) ), Congress specifies the coins that the Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to mint and issue and requires the Secretary to carry out these duties at the United States Mint (31 U.S.C. § 5131). Accordingly, the United States Mint is the only entity in the United States with the lawful authority to mint and issue legal tender United States coins."
That makes is unmistakably chear that the Federal Reserve Note is in violation of the law cited above.
All that's needed is let the Feds win the NORFED case and then use the proceedings against the Fed Reserve.
The obvious question: Do your lawyers accept Liberty Dollars??
The whole argument by the US mint that "Liberty Dollars" are illegal by quoting the constitution "The Congress shall have Power To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;."
- US Constitution, Article I, section 8, clause 5
"
also tells me that the PRIVATE company the Federal Reserve is ALSO ILLEGAL
So why the hell are we using the Federal Reserve if this is the US mint's argument?!!!
Hm, I wonder how this is going to affect the value of, and legal status of, my gold pieces.
I also recall that in the '30'3 when Roosevelt had gold confiscated that the feds could go into safety deposit boxes (I believe they can now under Bush but am not sure). Possibly it is wise to take gold and silver coins and medallions out of boxes.
I learned about the safety deposit box raids when I was researching the first blog essay I did. To see that and the most recent one go to http://www.alicelillieandher.blogspot.com
Y'all have over looked the most obvious. Article 1 section 10; "No State shall coin money;emit Bills of Credit; make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts". The the govt. is illegally using paper currency. I wonder why the treasury left that part out? Hmmmm, makes you wonder.
Not quite. That only means that the states can't emit bills of credit. It doesn't mean that the Federal government, or a federally chartered corporation like the Federal Reserve, can't do so....
The government ought to be scared witless. Until their December 2005 raid on e-gold's offices in Melbourne, Florida, that currency was growing exponentially in bar count, spends, and economic activity. The current attack on the Liberty Dollar reflects rapid growth in users and silver pieces in circulation.
Happily for the free market money community, there are major competitors in the online gold currency industry which are totally offshore, including 1MDC (growing exponentially), GoldMoney, Pecunix, and e-dinar. Some new entrants are poised to grow dramatically as well.
In 1976, in his seminal essay on the Denationalisation of Money, FA Hayek (Nobel laureate economist) wrote that removing the issue power of money from government was the only way to save civilization. Hayek called for the development of a free market money "movement." In 1996, Doug Jackson answered that call; in 1998 so did Bernard von NotHaus; in 2001 James Turk, Sidd Davis, JP May, Jim and Pam Fayed, and others. Personally, I find it amusing and significant that preceding all these groups to market was the Murabitun organized Islamic Mint offering gold dinars and silver dirhams.
The free market money movement stands foursquare against government issued fiat money, even when it is disguised as the issue of a banking cartel like the Federal Reserve. When you look at the 20th Century, you find that the way governments financed their wars, their regulations, their command economies, their boondoggles, and the genocides and combat deaths which amounted to some 250 million slaughtered by out of control government during that century alone, was with fiat money.
Supporting the Liberty Dollar is a good idea. It is not the only way to support the free market money community, however. The free market has presented lots of quality alternatives.
The legal battle between the government and NORFED is inevitable. At some point, the government has to go rigid and oppose any group that interferes with its exercising the issue power over money - whether that issue power is constitutional or not. (I believe a close review of the constitution makes it clear that there is no such authorized power.)
And, in the end, where you stand on this issue is where you stand on genocide, death camps, interventionist wars, nation building policies, and boondoggles. Either you are for free markets, in which case you must be against fiat money, or you are a socialist.
Regards,
Jim
Vertoro
and
Indomitus
You're quoting Article 1, Section 8 saying that only Congress can coin the money, but you fail to read on a bit further where it says, "To make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this Constitution in the government of the United States, or in any department or officer thereof." That means Congress can creating laws and acts in order to carry out such powers, and Congress did just that by passing the Federal Reserve Act of 1913. A synopsis: To provide for the establishment of Federal reserve banks, to furnish an elastic currency, to afford means of rediscounting commercial paper, to establish a more effective supervision of banking in the United States, and for other purposes.
So yeah, the FRS is legal and has been delegated the power, by Congress, to do that whole money thing.
The problem with your statement is that Congress cannot pass a law which contradicts the Constitution. The Constitution automatically makes any conflicting statutes "facially void", i.e. legally unenforceable.
Let's back up. What is the Fed? Where does money come from? Who profits? Who loses? Do your homework.
http://www.reformation.org/moneychangers.html
Who said something about not caring who runs the country but about who controls the currency?
Who "buys" the issue of the USMint and then controls the government in part through the banking system?
Is this action against NORFED another sign of these few in control to pull in the reins of money supply and give us a cashless society along with passage of "The Real ID Bill" and "The Patriot Act" to fully bring us into THE NEW WORLD ORDER?
Let us just say "NO"!
Movements like the Liberty Dollar and electronic bullion accounts are exactly what is needed to free currency from manipulation. That having been said, isn't the problem with the LD the fact that it has stamped upon it an exact dollar value? Certainly this is a measure of convenience, but it undermines what free market currencies should be all about. If the free market is to determine the price of gold and silver relative to the dollar what is the point of fixing a value to gold and silver coins? Let the U.S. Mint create dollar-denominated coins if it wishes; and let private companies create bullion coins. In the end, the more gold and silver in the pockets of citizens--regardless of who minted it or what is stamped on it--the less control over the money supply the Fed and the Mint will have.
"Give me control of a nation's money and I care not who makes it's laws." -- Meyer Rothschild
The Federal Reserve it the biggest scam in history. Not even the scam of Social Security even comes close.
The fact that the govt has issued this threat against NORFED suggests to me that the Liberty Dollar is becoming too popular, too many people are learning the truth about the Federal Reserve, and there are too many people who think that our money should actually have intrinisic value. The fed is trying to nip it in the bud. They see it as a real threat.
In response, NORFED has esentially thrown down the gauntlet and told the fed, "Bring it on!"
I'd like to know just exactly which "prosecutors" at the US Mint issued this statement that the ALD is "illegal" and that it's use is "criminal".
In the end, though, the "Soverign Money" movement may be doomed. You see, it doesn't matter if NORFED has the US Constitution or the law on their side. We all know that the Kourts are rigged. The International Bankers, the same folks who own and control the federal reserve, have our government and our nation by the proverbial BALLS and they know it.
We're on track for a cashless society, this may come sooner than you think.
Better stock up on the four metals of Liberty: Gold, Silver, Steel, and Lead.
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