1 00:00:01,720 --> 00:00:04,960 Speaker 1: All Zone Media. 2 00:00:06,600 --> 00:00:10,640 Speaker 2: Welcome to it could happen here a podcast about tariffs 3 00:00:10,640 --> 00:00:13,800 Speaker 2: and how to justify them. I am your host, Mio Wong, 4 00:00:14,680 --> 00:00:19,000 Speaker 2: and today we are talking about tariffs, the Supreme Court 5 00:00:19,079 --> 00:00:24,480 Speaker 2: ruling and how Trump is manufacturing a crisis to justify 6 00:00:24,520 --> 00:00:28,240 Speaker 2: the next set of tariffs that he has imposed. Oh boy, 7 00:00:28,400 --> 00:00:32,440 Speaker 2: so all right to recap our last tariffs segment so 8 00:00:32,440 --> 00:00:35,040 Speaker 2: people understand what I'm talking about when I talk about 9 00:00:35,080 --> 00:00:38,040 Speaker 2: the Supreme Court ruling from a few weeks ago. So 10 00:00:38,640 --> 00:00:41,720 Speaker 2: Trump had been claiming the ability to do tariffs under 11 00:00:41,760 --> 00:00:46,000 Speaker 2: the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, an act that famously 12 00:00:46,080 --> 00:00:50,440 Speaker 2: never says the word tariff, and the Supreme Court was like, no, actually, 13 00:00:50,479 --> 00:00:53,680 Speaker 2: that the International Economic Powers Act does not give you 14 00:00:53,840 --> 00:00:56,240 Speaker 2: the power to levy tariffs, a thing that it does 15 00:00:56,280 --> 00:00:59,760 Speaker 2: not say that you can do. So Trump got extremely 16 00:00:59,800 --> 00:01:03,760 Speaker 2: mad about this, and he imposed a ten percent tariff 17 00:01:03,800 --> 00:01:07,119 Speaker 2: across the board using a different law, as he said 18 00:01:07,160 --> 00:01:10,040 Speaker 2: he was going to do. Now, this ten percent across 19 00:01:10,040 --> 00:01:12,840 Speaker 2: the board tariff was run through section one twenty two 20 00:01:13,120 --> 00:01:16,080 Speaker 2: of the Trade Act of nineteen seventy four. We're going 21 00:01:16,120 --> 00:01:18,720 Speaker 2: to get into that, okay. So he imposes a ten 22 00:01:18,760 --> 00:01:22,039 Speaker 2: percent tariff using this like different authority from Section one 23 00:01:22,120 --> 00:01:25,520 Speaker 2: twenty two and the next day he goes, I'm going 24 00:01:25,560 --> 00:01:27,560 Speaker 2: to raise the tariff right to fifteen percents and this 25 00:01:27,640 --> 00:01:30,560 Speaker 2: is the terriff rate on the entire world. But then 26 00:01:30,560 --> 00:01:32,560 Speaker 2: he just forgot to do it because he got distracted 27 00:01:32,560 --> 00:01:36,600 Speaker 2: by i think invading Iran. So he has never actually, 28 00:01:36,880 --> 00:01:39,520 Speaker 2: you know, raised the teriff rate to fifteen percent, which 29 00:01:39,520 --> 00:01:42,679 Speaker 2: he said that he had done. So it's now just 30 00:01:42,720 --> 00:01:45,760 Speaker 2: at ten percent on the entire world instead of you know, 31 00:01:45,920 --> 00:01:48,480 Speaker 2: all of the sort of individual country teriffs that had 32 00:01:48,480 --> 00:01:51,880 Speaker 2: been in place before. And that's sort of the focus 33 00:01:52,000 --> 00:01:55,480 Speaker 2: of today's episode is about these tariffs, because these tariffs 34 00:01:55,480 --> 00:02:00,400 Speaker 2: are already being challenged in court, and I think that 35 00:02:00,400 --> 00:02:03,240 Speaker 2: that challenge has a very very good chance of winning 36 00:02:03,480 --> 00:02:08,000 Speaker 2: fairly easily. And the reason that those tariffs have a 37 00:02:08,080 --> 00:02:10,400 Speaker 2: very good chance of being overturned by the courts is 38 00:02:10,440 --> 00:02:16,160 Speaker 2: that unlike the IEPA tariffs that he was using, where 39 00:02:16,440 --> 00:02:19,880 Speaker 2: he was claiming illegally the authority to just do whatever 40 00:02:19,919 --> 00:02:22,079 Speaker 2: he wanted. This is why you would wake up in 41 00:02:22,120 --> 00:02:24,400 Speaker 2: the morning and there's like one hundred percent tariff on China, 42 00:02:24,639 --> 00:02:26,840 Speaker 2: like seven hundred percent tariff of Vietnam. Blah blah blah 43 00:02:26,840 --> 00:02:30,000 Speaker 2: blah blah. Trump was claiming that that act let him 44 00:02:30,000 --> 00:02:32,640 Speaker 2: do whatever he wanted. It did not. The court found 45 00:02:32,680 --> 00:02:36,120 Speaker 2: that he did not. But that was how he was 46 00:02:36,200 --> 00:02:37,920 Speaker 2: using teriffs, and he was the basis of how he 47 00:02:37,960 --> 00:02:41,200 Speaker 2: was using terris for diplomacy, right. You know, he would 48 00:02:41,200 --> 00:02:43,520 Speaker 2: put a tariff on someone at random, claiming this power, 49 00:02:43,560 --> 00:02:46,000 Speaker 2: and then he would like enter negotiations with them. And 50 00:02:46,040 --> 00:02:48,920 Speaker 2: he can't do that anymore. Now what he's done in 51 00:02:48,960 --> 00:02:52,919 Speaker 2: its place is again imposed this terroriffs using Section one 52 00:02:53,000 --> 00:02:57,240 Speaker 2: twenty two of the Trade Act. Now this authority is very, 53 00:02:57,880 --> 00:03:01,600 Speaker 2: very different than the authority Trump was claiming before. I'm 54 00:03:01,639 --> 00:03:04,359 Speaker 2: just going to read it because it mostly explains itself. 55 00:03:04,600 --> 00:03:07,240 Speaker 2: Do not worry about the international payment problems or balance 56 00:03:07,280 --> 00:03:09,920 Speaker 2: payments deficit that it mentions at the beginning. We're going 57 00:03:09,960 --> 00:03:12,200 Speaker 2: to go over that in a second. What's important for 58 00:03:12,240 --> 00:03:15,320 Speaker 2: our purposes here is that in order to put tariffs 59 00:03:15,360 --> 00:03:22,079 Speaker 2: into effect, quote, whenever fundamental international payment problems require special 60 00:03:22,160 --> 00:03:26,680 Speaker 2: import measures to restrict imports one to deal with large 61 00:03:26,680 --> 00:03:31,240 Speaker 2: and serious United States balance of payments deficits. Two to 62 00:03:31,360 --> 00:03:34,920 Speaker 2: prevent an imminent and significant appreciation of the dollar, in 63 00:03:35,040 --> 00:03:39,000 Speaker 2: foreign exchange markets, or three to cooperate with other countries 64 00:03:39,000 --> 00:03:43,400 Speaker 2: in correcting an international balance of payments disequilibrium. The President 65 00:03:43,480 --> 00:03:46,600 Speaker 2: shall proclaim for a period not exceeding one hundred and 66 00:03:46,680 --> 00:03:49,920 Speaker 2: fifty days, unless such a period is extended by an 67 00:03:49,960 --> 00:03:53,520 Speaker 2: Act of Congress, a temporary sarch charge not to exceed 68 00:03:53,560 --> 00:03:56,280 Speaker 2: fifteen percent out of lorum in the form of duties 69 00:03:56,680 --> 00:03:59,640 Speaker 2: in addition to those already opposed if any articles imported 70 00:03:59,640 --> 00:04:02,120 Speaker 2: into the U s Okay, So let's look at the 71 00:04:02,120 --> 00:04:07,240 Speaker 2: limits first, right, Instead of any rate of tariff on 72 00:04:07,320 --> 00:04:09,960 Speaker 2: any country, which is what Trump had been doing, Section 73 00:04:09,960 --> 00:04:12,560 Speaker 2: one twenty two only lets you set an up to 74 00:04:12,600 --> 00:04:15,560 Speaker 2: fifteen percent tariff on every country in the world and 75 00:04:15,760 --> 00:04:18,560 Speaker 2: only lasts for one hundred and fifty days unless Congress 76 00:04:18,600 --> 00:04:20,960 Speaker 2: votes to approve it. This sets up a giant fight 77 00:04:21,000 --> 00:04:23,760 Speaker 2: in Congress that Trump is not going to win. Now. 78 00:04:23,839 --> 00:04:25,880 Speaker 2: We may never get to that point because the same 79 00:04:26,000 --> 00:04:28,680 Speaker 2: right wing legal group who funded the lawsuit that overturned 80 00:04:28,680 --> 00:04:32,159 Speaker 2: the IEPA stuff is going after Section one twenty two 81 00:04:32,760 --> 00:04:35,080 Speaker 2: and they're going to win now. They're going to win 82 00:04:35,200 --> 00:04:38,400 Speaker 2: because Section one twenty two has literally never been implemented 83 00:04:38,440 --> 00:04:42,360 Speaker 2: before the tariffs specifically never been implemented. There is a 84 00:04:42,760 --> 00:04:47,360 Speaker 2: reason for that, and the reason is that to even 85 00:04:47,640 --> 00:04:50,479 Speaker 2: deploy Section one twenty two tariffs in the first place, 86 00:04:51,200 --> 00:04:56,640 Speaker 2: you need quote fundamental international payment problems. One to deal 87 00:04:56,720 --> 00:04:59,919 Speaker 2: with large and serious United States balance of payments deficits 88 00:05:00,640 --> 00:05:03,440 Speaker 2: to the print dollar depreciation, and cooperation with other countries 89 00:05:03,480 --> 00:05:07,680 Speaker 2: to correct international balance of payments this equilibrium. So those 90 00:05:07,680 --> 00:05:10,240 Speaker 2: are very specific conditions. What does that mean? What does 91 00:05:10,240 --> 00:05:11,839 Speaker 2: it mean for there to be a problem with balance 92 00:05:11,880 --> 00:05:16,120 Speaker 2: of payments? This requires us to understand what the fuck 93 00:05:16,200 --> 00:05:18,120 Speaker 2: balance of payments is. And it is here where I 94 00:05:18,120 --> 00:05:21,240 Speaker 2: am fulfilling my promise from that Executive Disorder episode where 95 00:05:21,240 --> 00:05:22,960 Speaker 2: I said I will explain it in the full episode. 96 00:05:23,040 --> 00:05:26,040 Speaker 2: All right, we're doing it, and oh fucking boy, are 97 00:05:26,120 --> 00:05:30,359 Speaker 2: you in for it, because Jesus Christ, oh my god, 98 00:05:31,120 --> 00:05:36,120 Speaker 2: holy shit, this stuff is annoyingly convoluted. But it is 99 00:05:36,200 --> 00:05:39,480 Speaker 2: also extremely important to how the global economy functions, how 100 00:05:39,480 --> 00:05:42,919 Speaker 2: it's changed. And you know, it's not really relevant for 101 00:05:43,160 --> 00:05:45,400 Speaker 2: the US at all, for reasons we will get into, 102 00:05:45,400 --> 00:05:47,800 Speaker 2: but it is extremely relevant for the economies of a 103 00:05:47,839 --> 00:05:51,719 Speaker 2: bunch of developing countries. So okay, let's start off with 104 00:05:52,120 --> 00:05:55,000 Speaker 2: balance of payments. So what is the balance of payments. 105 00:05:55,400 --> 00:05:57,480 Speaker 2: I'm just gonna start off by quoting the Saint Louis 106 00:05:57,520 --> 00:06:01,599 Speaker 2: Federal Reserve Balance of payments quote is a summary of 107 00:06:01,680 --> 00:06:06,279 Speaker 2: all the transactions involving goods, services, and investments between one 108 00:06:06,320 --> 00:06:10,080 Speaker 2: country and all other countries over a given time. Any 109 00:06:10,120 --> 00:06:13,520 Speaker 2: transaction that causes money to flow into a country is 110 00:06:13,560 --> 00:06:17,680 Speaker 2: a credit to balance payment accounts, and any transaction that 111 00:06:18,279 --> 00:06:22,920 Speaker 2: flows out is a debt. So this is a record 112 00:06:23,040 --> 00:06:26,159 Speaker 2: of literally every purchase in capital movement that goes in 113 00:06:26,160 --> 00:06:29,240 Speaker 2: and out of a country. Right, So it's goods services, 114 00:06:29,440 --> 00:06:32,799 Speaker 2: debt payments, and things can either be credits or debts. 115 00:06:32,800 --> 00:06:36,080 Speaker 2: This is the FED explains. You know things that are debts, right, 116 00:06:36,200 --> 00:06:38,880 Speaker 2: things that like make your account go lower is you know, 117 00:06:38,960 --> 00:06:43,520 Speaker 2: debt payments, capital transfer payments like buying imports. If you 118 00:06:43,520 --> 00:06:46,080 Speaker 2: were importing stuff from China, that is a debit. And 119 00:06:46,120 --> 00:06:47,839 Speaker 2: then there are things that are credits to make account 120 00:06:47,839 --> 00:06:51,120 Speaker 2: go up. So it's other countries paying for exports, capital 121 00:06:51,160 --> 00:06:55,320 Speaker 2: transfer receipts, and you know financial acsets and that's other 122 00:06:55,320 --> 00:06:58,599 Speaker 2: countries paying for your exports. So this is tracked in 123 00:06:58,839 --> 00:07:03,040 Speaker 2: like two accounts. There's a capital and finances account. I'm 124 00:07:03,040 --> 00:07:04,760 Speaker 2: just gonna call it the capital account because that's the 125 00:07:04,800 --> 00:07:07,240 Speaker 2: most common name for it, and it's shorter. So there's 126 00:07:07,240 --> 00:07:09,720 Speaker 2: the capital accounts that is all movement of capital in 127 00:07:09,760 --> 00:07:12,480 Speaker 2: and out of the country, and then there's a current account, 128 00:07:12,720 --> 00:07:15,560 Speaker 2: which is like a trade record of all goods and services. 129 00:07:16,280 --> 00:07:19,000 Speaker 2: Technically there's also stuff from like interest from an investment 130 00:07:19,080 --> 00:07:20,800 Speaker 2: goes there, but we don't really care about that for 131 00:07:20,840 --> 00:07:24,679 Speaker 2: our purposes. The current account is the account that's like trade, 132 00:07:25,160 --> 00:07:27,360 Speaker 2: and then there's a capital account, which is the account 133 00:07:27,400 --> 00:07:31,240 Speaker 2: that's all of the capital moving in and out. Now, importantly, 134 00:07:31,920 --> 00:07:36,120 Speaker 2: these two accounts, right, these two accounts compose balance of trade. Right, 135 00:07:36,320 --> 00:07:38,080 Speaker 2: this record has two accounts in it. Those are the 136 00:07:38,080 --> 00:07:40,440 Speaker 2: two accounts. If you line up all the credits and 137 00:07:40,440 --> 00:07:43,200 Speaker 2: debts and then they cancel out and equal zero, the 138 00:07:43,320 --> 00:07:46,160 Speaker 2: value of all goods being imported or exported as services 139 00:07:46,160 --> 00:07:48,480 Speaker 2: and stuff like that too, is the same as the 140 00:07:48,480 --> 00:07:50,520 Speaker 2: amount of capital moving in and out of the country. 141 00:07:50,760 --> 00:07:53,360 Speaker 2: The two accounts will cancel out. And this is what's 142 00:07:53,400 --> 00:07:56,320 Speaker 2: really confusing about balance of payments, because why the fuck 143 00:07:56,400 --> 00:07:56,920 Speaker 2: is that true? 144 00:07:57,280 --> 00:07:57,480 Speaker 3: Right? 145 00:07:57,800 --> 00:08:00,480 Speaker 2: Why are the capital flows and trade balance white? Can't 146 00:08:00,520 --> 00:08:04,840 Speaker 2: you have an imbalance, and the answer is that's how 147 00:08:04,840 --> 00:08:07,920 Speaker 2: the accounting system works. And the reason the accounting system 148 00:08:07,960 --> 00:08:10,800 Speaker 2: works like that is because of what balance of payments 149 00:08:11,040 --> 00:08:13,480 Speaker 2: is now. Weirdly, if you want a more detailed explanation, 150 00:08:13,560 --> 00:08:16,720 Speaker 2: there are a billion detailed explanations that are extremely convoluted 151 00:08:16,720 --> 00:08:20,480 Speaker 2: and annoying. The Reserve Bank of Australia weirdly has like 152 00:08:20,520 --> 00:08:23,520 Speaker 2: a readable one for people who aren't like engrossed and 153 00:08:23,560 --> 00:08:26,840 Speaker 2: financial stuff however, come up, I'm going to try to 154 00:08:26,880 --> 00:08:30,360 Speaker 2: explain it. So balance of payments is the record of 155 00:08:30,560 --> 00:08:34,320 Speaker 2: everything that moves in and out of a country, you know. 156 00:08:34,400 --> 00:08:37,880 Speaker 2: So that's goods, that services, that's money, it's stocked. When 157 00:08:37,920 --> 00:08:40,640 Speaker 2: I say it tracks everything, right, was a record of everything. 158 00:08:40,960 --> 00:08:44,640 Speaker 2: That means it's recording both sides of a transaction. So 159 00:08:44,679 --> 00:08:47,640 Speaker 2: what does that mean? Okay, imagine a receipt, right, it's 160 00:08:47,640 --> 00:08:50,520 Speaker 2: a receipt for a burger. You have bought one hamburger. 161 00:08:51,160 --> 00:08:54,439 Speaker 2: On the receipt is the thing you bought the burger 162 00:08:54,880 --> 00:08:57,560 Speaker 2: and how much it cost, which is the money you 163 00:08:57,559 --> 00:09:01,640 Speaker 2: pay for it. Balance of payments track both the burger 164 00:09:02,200 --> 00:09:04,920 Speaker 2: and the money you paid for it. Because it tracked 165 00:09:04,960 --> 00:09:08,960 Speaker 2: international trade, right, it's tracking international movement of stuff. And 166 00:09:09,000 --> 00:09:14,240 Speaker 2: because both the burger and the money changed hands across borders, right, 167 00:09:14,720 --> 00:09:18,640 Speaker 2: it tracks both of them. And that is why when 168 00:09:18,679 --> 00:09:21,000 Speaker 2: you put all the credits and debts from both accounts together, 169 00:09:21,080 --> 00:09:24,079 Speaker 2: it adds up to zero, right, because you know, think 170 00:09:24,120 --> 00:09:28,600 Speaker 2: about like the net transfer of funds on that burger. Right, 171 00:09:29,080 --> 00:09:31,800 Speaker 2: on the one hand, there is the burger, and on 172 00:09:31,840 --> 00:09:34,600 Speaker 2: the other hand there is you know, how much money 173 00:09:34,600 --> 00:09:37,360 Speaker 2: you paid for the burger, and those two things are equivalent, right. 174 00:09:37,400 --> 00:09:38,920 Speaker 2: The value of the burger is how much it's worth. 175 00:09:39,679 --> 00:09:44,160 Speaker 2: So okay, that means that in the accounting of it, right, 176 00:09:44,400 --> 00:09:47,640 Speaker 2: the account on the receipt, which shows both of these things, 177 00:09:47,800 --> 00:09:50,600 Speaker 2: is balanced because it's tracking both of them, right. And 178 00:09:50,600 --> 00:09:52,920 Speaker 2: this is the same way it works for an investment. 179 00:09:53,600 --> 00:09:56,800 Speaker 2: You buy shares of a company, So okay, there's the 180 00:09:56,840 --> 00:09:59,679 Speaker 2: money for the shares and the shares themselves, and they're 181 00:09:59,720 --> 00:10:02,720 Speaker 2: both being tracked and they both go into the record 182 00:10:02,760 --> 00:10:06,679 Speaker 2: that balance of payments keeps. So there are some convoluted 183 00:10:06,720 --> 00:10:09,080 Speaker 2: things about this, and this is the reason why you 184 00:10:09,120 --> 00:10:11,719 Speaker 2: need to combine both accounts instead of each account being 185 00:10:11,720 --> 00:10:16,160 Speaker 2: balanced by themselves, because sometimes the record of the burger 186 00:10:16,760 --> 00:10:19,040 Speaker 2: goes in one account and the record of the money 187 00:10:19,360 --> 00:10:22,360 Speaker 2: for that burger goes at a different account. This is convoluted. 188 00:10:22,360 --> 00:10:25,400 Speaker 2: It's because of how income is classified. It's a mess. 189 00:10:25,400 --> 00:10:27,200 Speaker 2: You can go read the Berserve Bank of Australia. But 190 00:10:27,240 --> 00:10:30,800 Speaker 2: that's why you need both accounts together to get the 191 00:10:30,840 --> 00:10:35,040 Speaker 2: balance of payments, right, because both the burger and the 192 00:10:35,120 --> 00:10:38,720 Speaker 2: money for the burger are in the balance of payments somewhere, 193 00:10:39,000 --> 00:10:40,760 Speaker 2: but they might go in different accounts, so you need 194 00:10:40,800 --> 00:10:42,600 Speaker 2: to put them together. And that's how you get the 195 00:10:42,640 --> 00:10:45,280 Speaker 2: balance of payments. And see, that's why it's called the 196 00:10:45,320 --> 00:10:48,040 Speaker 2: balance of payments, right, they balance out. See now you're 197 00:10:48,080 --> 00:10:49,680 Speaker 2: getting it. Now you're getting it. This is why it 198 00:10:49,679 --> 00:10:52,200 Speaker 2: always bounces out to zero because it's the balance of 199 00:10:52,280 --> 00:10:54,480 Speaker 2: both the money and the object. 200 00:10:54,840 --> 00:10:55,080 Speaker 3: Right. 201 00:10:55,840 --> 00:10:58,400 Speaker 2: So sharp eared listeners may be going, wait, hold on. 202 00:10:58,559 --> 00:11:00,560 Speaker 2: So Section one twenty two, which is where the tariffs 203 00:11:00,600 --> 00:11:03,640 Speaker 2: are from, is about a deficit in the balance of payments. 204 00:11:03,920 --> 00:11:06,320 Speaker 2: How can you have a deficit if it always balances 205 00:11:06,320 --> 00:11:09,240 Speaker 2: out to zero? And the answer is, technically speaking, you can't. 206 00:11:09,960 --> 00:11:12,120 Speaker 2: So Okay, what the fuck is going on here? Why 207 00:11:12,240 --> 00:11:14,559 Speaker 2: is Trump using and Trump stifically is claiming that there's 208 00:11:14,559 --> 00:11:16,800 Speaker 2: a balance of payments deficit, and there's a crisis in 209 00:11:16,880 --> 00:11:20,440 Speaker 2: order to impose these tariffs. So what is going on here? 210 00:11:20,960 --> 00:11:25,160 Speaker 2: Why does this law exist? You will find out after 211 00:11:25,280 --> 00:11:42,320 Speaker 2: these ads whoa cliffhanger A. So to explain what is 212 00:11:42,360 --> 00:11:45,480 Speaker 2: going on here, we need to take a detour back 213 00:11:45,520 --> 00:11:48,280 Speaker 2: in time to when this was written. This Act was 214 00:11:48,280 --> 00:11:50,560 Speaker 2: written in nineteen seventy four, but we need to go 215 00:11:50,640 --> 00:11:54,199 Speaker 2: back a little further to nineteen seventy one. Now, in 216 00:11:54,280 --> 00:11:59,120 Speaker 2: nineteen seventy one, Richard Nixon makes probably the most consequential 217 00:11:59,200 --> 00:12:03,840 Speaker 2: in a macro sense, change to like how currency functions 218 00:12:03,840 --> 00:12:07,320 Speaker 2: on a global scale in probably half a millennia when 219 00:12:07,320 --> 00:12:10,560 Speaker 2: he pulled the US off the gold standard. So what 220 00:12:10,600 --> 00:12:13,560 Speaker 2: does this mean. It means that Nixon ended what was 221 00:12:13,600 --> 00:12:16,760 Speaker 2: called dollar convertibility, or the ability to go to the 222 00:12:16,880 --> 00:12:20,079 Speaker 2: government and trade your dollar for a certain amount of gold. 223 00:12:21,080 --> 00:12:24,360 Speaker 2: So this fixes the value of the dollar to the 224 00:12:24,440 --> 00:12:26,480 Speaker 2: value of gold. So the value of your currency is 225 00:12:26,520 --> 00:12:30,360 Speaker 2: sort of relatively constant in that like it's this much gold, right, 226 00:12:31,080 --> 00:12:34,480 Speaker 2: But it means that your macroeconomic policy is constrained by 227 00:12:34,520 --> 00:12:38,800 Speaker 2: your gold supply. So why did Nixon take the US 228 00:12:38,840 --> 00:12:40,880 Speaker 2: off the gold standard? And what does that have to 229 00:12:40,880 --> 00:12:46,600 Speaker 2: do with balance of payments. Surprisingly everything, So okay, what 230 00:12:46,640 --> 00:12:49,400 Speaker 2: I've been describing about balance of payments, I've been describing 231 00:12:49,559 --> 00:12:53,199 Speaker 2: modern balance of payments. If you go back and read 232 00:12:53,320 --> 00:12:56,480 Speaker 2: stuff from the FED from this era, when they talk 233 00:12:56,520 --> 00:12:59,960 Speaker 2: about balance of payments or talking about flows of gold. 234 00:13:00,160 --> 00:13:03,080 Speaker 2: In this period, every dollar that leaves the country represents 235 00:13:03,120 --> 00:13:05,840 Speaker 2: an amount of gold, and the more of it that 236 00:13:05,960 --> 00:13:08,840 Speaker 2: leaves the country, the more pressure that puts on the 237 00:13:08,920 --> 00:13:11,200 Speaker 2: US gold reserves, because you know, there's less and less 238 00:13:11,200 --> 00:13:13,679 Speaker 2: of it. This is what they're talking about when they 239 00:13:13,720 --> 00:13:17,800 Speaker 2: talk about balance of payments. Right now. What's interesting here, 240 00:13:17,840 --> 00:13:20,280 Speaker 2: and this is something that's important for our modern purposes, 241 00:13:20,360 --> 00:13:23,520 Speaker 2: is that the problem that the US was facing in 242 00:13:23,559 --> 00:13:26,959 Speaker 2: the fifties and sixties that causes Nixon to do this 243 00:13:27,400 --> 00:13:29,959 Speaker 2: when they're talking about having balance of payments deficits, which 244 00:13:30,000 --> 00:13:31,800 Speaker 2: they are in this period, right. And this is why 245 00:13:31,840 --> 00:13:33,600 Speaker 2: this law is written, is because this is a period 246 00:13:33,640 --> 00:13:37,319 Speaker 2: where this stuff is talked about. The problem isn't a 247 00:13:37,320 --> 00:13:40,120 Speaker 2: trade deficit, right, and this is very important. Trade deficits 248 00:13:40,240 --> 00:13:43,480 Speaker 2: and balance of payments deficits not the same thing at all. 249 00:13:43,520 --> 00:13:45,679 Speaker 2: In fact, in this whole period when the US is 250 00:13:45,720 --> 00:13:48,400 Speaker 2: running these massive balanced payments deficits to become a problem. 251 00:13:48,880 --> 00:13:53,240 Speaker 2: They have a trade surplus, right, they have a trade surplus, 252 00:13:53,280 --> 00:13:57,720 Speaker 2: So like, okay, how are they like losing gold then, right, like, 253 00:13:57,760 --> 00:14:00,760 Speaker 2: how are dollars flowing out of the country. Well, it 254 00:14:00,800 --> 00:14:04,559 Speaker 2: turns out that what's actually making this a balance of 255 00:14:04,600 --> 00:14:07,480 Speaker 2: account deficit, where like dollars are leaving the economy, which 256 00:14:07,480 --> 00:14:11,199 Speaker 2: means golds leaving the US's vaults, is that the US 257 00:14:11,280 --> 00:14:13,800 Speaker 2: is spending too much of this military. It's always speaking 258 00:14:13,840 --> 00:14:17,520 Speaker 2: military spending. It is always fucking military spending. Holy shit, 259 00:14:17,640 --> 00:14:21,000 Speaker 2: it's the reason everything is broken. It it's literally just 260 00:14:21,000 --> 00:14:23,400 Speaker 2: always military spending. We're spending too much gold on the 261 00:14:23,440 --> 00:14:24,160 Speaker 2: damn military. 262 00:14:24,840 --> 00:14:25,000 Speaker 3: Right. 263 00:14:26,040 --> 00:14:28,720 Speaker 2: So the deficit, and we we're talking about a bounced 264 00:14:28,720 --> 00:14:31,480 Speaker 2: payments deficit. The actual deficit is that in order to 265 00:14:31,760 --> 00:14:34,600 Speaker 2: pay for wars and to do military bases, they are 266 00:14:34,640 --> 00:14:38,640 Speaker 2: spending money in other countries. And this is technically like 267 00:14:38,720 --> 00:14:40,280 Speaker 2: part of the bounce of payments, right, because it's money 268 00:14:40,320 --> 00:14:43,720 Speaker 2: leaving the country. And you know, like technically speaking the 269 00:14:43,720 --> 00:14:46,440 Speaker 2: balance of payments as we've been talking about it, right, 270 00:14:46,480 --> 00:14:50,600 Speaker 2: like the account is balanced, but we keep spending dollars 271 00:14:50,680 --> 00:14:52,960 Speaker 2: in order to obtain military bases, and then also in 272 00:14:53,080 --> 00:14:55,880 Speaker 2: order to bomb Korea and Vietnam, and the dollars have 273 00:14:55,960 --> 00:14:59,040 Speaker 2: to come from somewhere. Now, again, the dollar at this 274 00:14:59,080 --> 00:15:03,240 Speaker 2: point is goal. It represents a fixed amount of gold 275 00:15:03,520 --> 00:15:07,560 Speaker 2: that the US has, and those dollars are coming from 276 00:15:07,600 --> 00:15:09,880 Speaker 2: the US government, so that that's what the actual quote 277 00:15:09,960 --> 00:15:12,840 Speaker 2: unquote deficit is in this case. Right, you will see 278 00:15:12,840 --> 00:15:14,720 Speaker 2: this described as like, oh my god, they're paying for 279 00:15:15,320 --> 00:15:17,760 Speaker 2: stuff from the current account from the Capitol count. No. No, no, 280 00:15:17,800 --> 00:15:21,840 Speaker 2: technically yes, but what's actually happening here is that the US. Right, 281 00:15:22,000 --> 00:15:24,200 Speaker 2: it's gold leaving the country because the US is having 282 00:15:24,240 --> 00:15:27,720 Speaker 2: to buy shit for a military basis, right, and it's 283 00:15:27,720 --> 00:15:30,640 Speaker 2: not getting enough gold back from trade to replenish the 284 00:15:30,640 --> 00:15:33,120 Speaker 2: amount of gold that the US is spending on these 285 00:15:33,120 --> 00:15:37,400 Speaker 2: military bases. Now, in theory, this is fine because it's 286 00:15:37,440 --> 00:15:40,080 Speaker 2: technically speaking, you're spending dollars, and as long as no 287 00:15:40,120 --> 00:15:45,080 Speaker 2: one tries to actually convert those dollars into gold, you'll 288 00:15:45,120 --> 00:15:49,160 Speaker 2: be okay. Enter one Charles de Gaulle, President of France, 289 00:15:49,480 --> 00:15:53,200 Speaker 2: who begins to unmass convert American dollars into gold in 290 00:15:53,280 --> 00:15:55,880 Speaker 2: order to end the dollar's reign as the world deserve 291 00:15:55,920 --> 00:15:57,840 Speaker 2: currency because it was pissed off at the US running 292 00:15:57,840 --> 00:16:01,359 Speaker 2: the world. This is not like Charlos the gall Anti imperialists. 293 00:16:01,480 --> 00:16:04,080 Speaker 2: De Gaull does not want like the end of imperialism. 294 00:16:04,080 --> 00:16:06,640 Speaker 2: Degaull wants there to be equal footing or more equal 295 00:16:06,680 --> 00:16:08,680 Speaker 2: footing between the different imperialist powers. 296 00:16:08,760 --> 00:16:08,880 Speaker 3: Right. 297 00:16:08,920 --> 00:16:12,160 Speaker 2: He just wants France to be like a major world power, 298 00:16:12,280 --> 00:16:13,600 Speaker 2: imperialist power as well. 299 00:16:14,280 --> 00:16:24,360 Speaker 3: Right. 300 00:16:25,520 --> 00:16:28,000 Speaker 2: The power of the US gets from being the world 301 00:16:28,040 --> 00:16:32,520 Speaker 2: reserve currency is extremely important. So what is the reserve currency? 302 00:16:32,520 --> 00:16:35,040 Speaker 2: The reserve currency is the currency that, like all global 303 00:16:35,080 --> 00:16:38,800 Speaker 2: trade is done in. And because it's the currency that 304 00:16:38,840 --> 00:16:41,040 Speaker 2: all global trade is done in, all of the world's 305 00:16:41,080 --> 00:16:44,080 Speaker 2: central banks have to hold like a bunch of that currency, right, 306 00:16:44,080 --> 00:16:47,080 Speaker 2: And that's why it's called the reserve currency. But I 307 00:16:47,160 --> 00:16:49,680 Speaker 2: say all of the world's central banks have to hold it, 308 00:16:50,000 --> 00:16:52,080 Speaker 2: except for the United States, which does not have to 309 00:16:52,120 --> 00:16:54,360 Speaker 2: hold dollars because it's our fucking currency. And if we 310 00:16:54,400 --> 00:16:58,160 Speaker 2: want more, we can just print more. Right. So this 311 00:16:58,200 --> 00:17:00,920 Speaker 2: is time they called like seniorage privilege. But like that, 312 00:17:00,920 --> 00:17:04,040 Speaker 2: the power of this right is enormous and the dollar 313 00:17:04,119 --> 00:17:06,800 Speaker 2: status of the reserve currency is actually really important to 314 00:17:06,880 --> 00:17:09,240 Speaker 2: us in terms of explaining these sort of balance of 315 00:17:09,240 --> 00:17:13,040 Speaker 2: payments deficits and crises. So, okay, here's a Saint Louis 316 00:17:13,040 --> 00:17:16,200 Speaker 2: fed on why countries have to hold wood reserve currencies. 317 00:17:16,600 --> 00:17:19,679 Speaker 2: Quote governments and or es central banks keep you know, 318 00:17:19,760 --> 00:17:24,400 Speaker 2: like reserve currency on hand for several reasons, including exchange management, 319 00:17:24,960 --> 00:17:28,400 Speaker 2: insurance against sudden loss of ability to pay for imports 320 00:17:28,440 --> 00:17:31,919 Speaker 2: caused by a halt capital inflows such as foreign direct 321 00:17:31,920 --> 00:17:35,439 Speaker 2: investment to the domestic market, foreign purchases of domestic stocks 322 00:17:35,480 --> 00:17:38,159 Speaker 2: or balls, or domestic borrowing from the rest of the world. 323 00:17:38,920 --> 00:17:43,720 Speaker 2: Insurance for other economic contingencies such as wars or natural disasters. Now, 324 00:17:44,000 --> 00:17:47,720 Speaker 2: the second one is what's of concern to us, right, 325 00:17:47,800 --> 00:17:51,680 Speaker 2: it's insurance against sudden loss of ability to pay for imports. 326 00:17:52,240 --> 00:17:55,240 Speaker 2: And that's what's commonly known as a balance of payments 327 00:17:55,240 --> 00:17:57,960 Speaker 2: crisis in the current day, when you run out of 328 00:17:58,000 --> 00:17:59,920 Speaker 2: dollars to pay for your imports or to pay for 329 00:18:00,080 --> 00:18:02,360 Speaker 2: your foreign debt, which is a real issue too, right, 330 00:18:02,480 --> 00:18:04,280 Speaker 2: Usually your money goes to the foreign debt and then 331 00:18:04,320 --> 00:18:06,479 Speaker 2: you're out of currency and then you can't you know, 332 00:18:06,560 --> 00:18:09,760 Speaker 2: like import more shit. This is a bounce of payments crisis, 333 00:18:10,280 --> 00:18:13,880 Speaker 2: and they're actually pretty common, decently common in a bunch 334 00:18:13,920 --> 00:18:17,720 Speaker 2: of developing countries, and they are almost always completely catastrophic. 335 00:18:18,000 --> 00:18:20,720 Speaker 2: It's one of the foremost causes of modern revolutions because 336 00:18:20,720 --> 00:18:22,439 Speaker 2: when you have one of these bounds of payments crises, 337 00:18:22,480 --> 00:18:24,920 Speaker 2: you can't afford to fucking import things because you don't 338 00:18:24,920 --> 00:18:27,359 Speaker 2: have enough dollars. You can't import oil or you know, 339 00:18:27,520 --> 00:18:30,840 Speaker 2: fertilizer or food because you don't have enough dollars to 340 00:18:30,880 --> 00:18:32,480 Speaker 2: do it, and your government has gone through all of 341 00:18:32,480 --> 00:18:34,800 Speaker 2: the dollar reserves. As I talked about in the ED, 342 00:18:35,440 --> 00:18:38,120 Speaker 2: Sri Lanka is probably the most recent example. The country, 343 00:18:38,320 --> 00:18:40,840 Speaker 2: you know, just ran out of dollars to purchase shit with, 344 00:18:41,000 --> 00:18:44,520 Speaker 2: and the ensuing unbelievably hideous shit that everyone had to 345 00:18:44,520 --> 00:18:47,640 Speaker 2: suffer through cause people to burn down the president's fucking mansion. 346 00:18:48,280 --> 00:18:50,040 Speaker 2: You will know, and I said this is before you 347 00:18:50,080 --> 00:18:52,639 Speaker 2: will know if the US has a bounce of payments crisis, 348 00:18:52,640 --> 00:18:54,679 Speaker 2: because you will see the smoke and flames outside of 349 00:18:54,680 --> 00:18:57,000 Speaker 2: your window, and it's such. It's like Sri Lanka, right, 350 00:18:57,040 --> 00:18:59,040 Speaker 2: like the revolution in Sudan. Like the reason that there's 351 00:18:59,040 --> 00:19:01,679 Speaker 2: a civil war in Sudan now so some extent is 352 00:19:01,680 --> 00:19:04,200 Speaker 2: because of one of these crises that set off a revolution, 353 00:19:04,359 --> 00:19:08,120 Speaker 2: even though you know what usually happens in these cases, right, 354 00:19:08,240 --> 00:19:10,600 Speaker 2: is that a country has one of these crises and 355 00:19:10,640 --> 00:19:14,680 Speaker 2: then someone, usually the International Monetary Fund, will give them 356 00:19:14,680 --> 00:19:16,320 Speaker 2: a loan, and so they will give them dollars in 357 00:19:16,359 --> 00:19:19,119 Speaker 2: exchange for you know, like turning the entire economy of 358 00:19:19,119 --> 00:19:22,359 Speaker 2: that country into a debt servicing machine, which means, you know, 359 00:19:22,400 --> 00:19:24,440 Speaker 2: like taking food out of the mouths of babies to 360 00:19:24,480 --> 00:19:28,520 Speaker 2: pay that debt back. And this also often causes revolutions, right, like, so, 361 00:19:28,600 --> 00:19:30,679 Speaker 2: like Sudan had a balance of payments crisis and in 362 00:19:30,760 --> 00:19:33,480 Speaker 2: like twenty eighteen, late twenty eighteen, twenty nineteen, and they 363 00:19:33,520 --> 00:19:36,320 Speaker 2: eventually got an im A bailout deal, but like the 364 00:19:36,359 --> 00:19:38,280 Speaker 2: price of bread increased by two hundred and fifty percent 365 00:19:38,359 --> 00:19:42,080 Speaker 2: and people drove over al basher out of power. However, 366 00:19:42,400 --> 00:19:44,600 Speaker 2: come you will note that I have been saying that 367 00:19:44,640 --> 00:19:47,480 Speaker 2: these crises are caused because countries are run out of dollars. 368 00:19:48,720 --> 00:19:51,359 Speaker 2: But we can't run out of dollars because those are 369 00:19:51,600 --> 00:19:54,879 Speaker 2: United States dollars. We can just fucking print them. We 370 00:19:55,000 --> 00:19:58,280 Speaker 2: literally cannot have this kind of bounce of payments crisis 371 00:19:58,840 --> 00:20:02,639 Speaker 2: because it's all our own money, and we can just 372 00:20:02,880 --> 00:20:08,520 Speaker 2: print shit in our own money. Jesus Christ, this is 373 00:20:08,720 --> 00:20:12,800 Speaker 2: so silly, losing my mind, Like it's not possible, you 374 00:20:12,840 --> 00:20:16,800 Speaker 2: can't do it. Oh my god. Now, however, why is 375 00:20:16,840 --> 00:20:18,919 Speaker 2: the law like this, right, Like, why why is there 376 00:20:18,960 --> 00:20:21,560 Speaker 2: a law written talking about the US as if it 377 00:20:21,600 --> 00:20:24,840 Speaker 2: could have a bouts of payments deficit? Again, Like, right 378 00:20:24,920 --> 00:20:27,880 Speaker 2: up until nineteen seventy one, when Nixon took the US 379 00:20:27,920 --> 00:20:32,919 Speaker 2: off the gold standard, it actually was possible to, you know, 380 00:20:33,000 --> 00:20:34,720 Speaker 2: make the US run out of dollars because you could 381 00:20:34,760 --> 00:20:36,199 Speaker 2: run out of gold. And this is what like the 382 00:20:36,240 --> 00:20:38,120 Speaker 2: goal was trying to do, you know, by like making 383 00:20:38,119 --> 00:20:41,040 Speaker 2: the US convert all his dollars into gold. But Nixon 384 00:20:41,080 --> 00:20:43,000 Speaker 2: just said, fuck it. The dollars of floating currency now, 385 00:20:43,440 --> 00:20:46,399 Speaker 2: and since its value isn't pegged to a certain amount 386 00:20:46,440 --> 00:20:49,159 Speaker 2: of anything else, right, And that's the way it's been 387 00:20:49,160 --> 00:20:50,919 Speaker 2: ever since, we can't have these crises. 388 00:20:50,920 --> 00:20:51,040 Speaker 3: Now. 389 00:20:51,040 --> 00:20:53,800 Speaker 2: The countries that have these crises in modern day are 390 00:20:53,880 --> 00:20:57,640 Speaker 2: ones that peg their currency to like a specific amount 391 00:20:57,720 --> 00:21:00,960 Speaker 2: of dollars, right, And they tend to run out of 392 00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:03,280 Speaker 2: the reserves trying to like stabilize the value of their 393 00:21:03,320 --> 00:21:07,200 Speaker 2: currency by offering conversions of their currency into the dollar 394 00:21:07,240 --> 00:21:09,960 Speaker 2: at the official rate by like letting people go convert 395 00:21:10,080 --> 00:21:14,119 Speaker 2: their currency into dollars. But again, we can't have that 396 00:21:14,320 --> 00:21:18,280 Speaker 2: because it's dollars. We owe shit in dollars. And also, 397 00:21:18,320 --> 00:21:20,040 Speaker 2: in order to have like a full on balance payments 398 00:21:20,080 --> 00:21:23,520 Speaker 2: crisis where you can't pay for things right, it requires 399 00:21:23,960 --> 00:21:26,359 Speaker 2: no one to be like willing to lend you money. 400 00:21:26,560 --> 00:21:29,159 Speaker 2: And it's like, okay, like who is not going to 401 00:21:29,280 --> 00:21:31,720 Speaker 2: lend the United States of America money? Like are you 402 00:21:32,040 --> 00:21:33,840 Speaker 2: kidding me? This is this is the figgas crisis of 403 00:21:33,880 --> 00:21:36,760 Speaker 2: all time. This bill, however, was passed again in like 404 00:21:36,840 --> 00:21:40,040 Speaker 2: nineteen seventy four, and it was only three years after 405 00:21:40,080 --> 00:21:43,399 Speaker 2: the US was off the gold standard, and so people 406 00:21:43,440 --> 00:21:46,280 Speaker 2: were like, Okay, we're gonna do this thing in case 407 00:21:46,359 --> 00:21:48,320 Speaker 2: we ever go back to a situation where this stuff 408 00:21:48,359 --> 00:21:52,720 Speaker 2: is possible. But right now, like we literally structurally cannot 409 00:21:52,760 --> 00:21:56,320 Speaker 2: have a balance of payments crisis, like we can't have one. 410 00:21:57,240 --> 00:22:00,199 Speaker 2: You can't have a balance of payment's deficits. If this 411 00:22:00,240 --> 00:22:03,280 Speaker 2: is not the same as a trade deficit. Trump is 412 00:22:03,320 --> 00:22:05,040 Speaker 2: trying to argue that's, oh, we have a trade deficit. 413 00:22:05,160 --> 00:22:07,439 Speaker 2: Our current account, which is like the trade account is 414 00:22:07,480 --> 00:22:11,200 Speaker 2: like four percent below balance. But then if you look 415 00:22:11,200 --> 00:22:13,680 Speaker 2: at the capitol account and you put them together at balances, 416 00:22:13,720 --> 00:22:16,160 Speaker 2: because that's just how it works, Oh, that means we're 417 00:22:16,200 --> 00:22:20,320 Speaker 2: in trouble and nonsense, absolutely bullshit. He's also claiming that 418 00:22:20,320 --> 00:22:23,080 Speaker 2: there's like fundamental international payment problems, which I know there aren't, 419 00:22:23,160 --> 00:22:27,280 Speaker 2: because fundamental international payment problems means you can't pay for 420 00:22:27,359 --> 00:22:32,280 Speaker 2: your imports or like your debt, and if we weren't 421 00:22:32,320 --> 00:22:36,760 Speaker 2: able to do that, you would all know. So, ah, 422 00:22:36,840 --> 00:22:39,439 Speaker 2: they're going to lose this lawsuit because this is the 423 00:22:39,480 --> 00:22:43,679 Speaker 2: fakest crisis that has ever existed. And now you know 424 00:22:43,800 --> 00:22:47,840 Speaker 2: how fake it is, and also what balance of payments 425 00:22:47,960 --> 00:22:50,320 Speaker 2: is you know? Okay, I'm going to close on a 426 00:22:50,400 --> 00:22:53,520 Speaker 2: story about this, which is that there is a scenario 427 00:22:53,640 --> 00:22:58,680 Speaker 2: in which this knowledge has actually saved countries before, and specifically, 428 00:22:58,760 --> 00:23:01,879 Speaker 2: like the country that this safe was Cuba. There's like 429 00:23:01,920 --> 00:23:05,760 Speaker 2: the Cuban Revolution, right and immediately after the Cuban Revolution, 430 00:23:06,200 --> 00:23:09,080 Speaker 2: the government it's not like clear of their communists. Yet 431 00:23:09,119 --> 00:23:11,239 Speaker 2: there's this very very short window where it's like not 432 00:23:11,320 --> 00:23:14,040 Speaker 2: quite entirely clear what the fuck is going to be 433 00:23:14,119 --> 00:23:17,399 Speaker 2: going on with this new like Cuban government and the 434 00:23:17,440 --> 00:23:21,280 Speaker 2: government sends chay Guevara to the US to negotiate with 435 00:23:21,320 --> 00:23:25,760 Speaker 2: a bunch of American banks, right, and chay Guevara actually 436 00:23:25,840 --> 00:23:28,560 Speaker 2: understands this stuff, right, he knows a balance of payments is, 437 00:23:28,600 --> 00:23:31,439 Speaker 2: he knows he's able to like talk to all of 438 00:23:31,440 --> 00:23:33,520 Speaker 2: the sort of Manhattan bankers who are talking about this 439 00:23:33,560 --> 00:23:36,959 Speaker 2: stuff on their terms, right, and like they literally literally 440 00:23:36,960 --> 00:23:38,600 Speaker 2: the line they say about it was like, yeah, he 441 00:23:38,640 --> 00:23:40,639 Speaker 2: talks like a banker, right, he understands balance of payments, 442 00:23:40,640 --> 00:23:43,280 Speaker 2: He understands all of this stuff and what he's able 443 00:23:43,320 --> 00:23:46,680 Speaker 2: to do. And this is critically like why the nation 444 00:23:46,800 --> 00:23:51,080 Speaker 2: of Cuba, like like why the Cuban Revolution succeeded was 445 00:23:51,119 --> 00:23:53,840 Speaker 2: that he was able to get the US to give 446 00:23:53,920 --> 00:23:57,200 Speaker 2: him all of his gold, like because he was able 447 00:23:57,200 --> 00:23:59,560 Speaker 2: to convince these bankers because he understood what they were 448 00:23:59,560 --> 00:24:02,159 Speaker 2: talking about out in their language, and the Uziplo convinces 449 00:24:02,200 --> 00:24:04,800 Speaker 2: the US governments to get him all this fucking gold 450 00:24:04,800 --> 00:24:07,960 Speaker 2: because he understood how the shit works. And that's why, 451 00:24:08,000 --> 00:24:10,639 Speaker 2: like Cuba was like functional as a country after that, 452 00:24:10,680 --> 00:24:12,920 Speaker 2: because they had managed to get all of their gold reserves, 453 00:24:12,920 --> 00:24:15,600 Speaker 2: which previously had been being held in the US. So 454 00:24:16,119 --> 00:24:18,960 Speaker 2: you know, you never know when you too might be 455 00:24:19,000 --> 00:24:21,200 Speaker 2: at the head of a better revolution, or you might 456 00:24:21,280 --> 00:24:24,600 Speaker 2: be the one person in the new revolutionary coalition who 457 00:24:24,680 --> 00:24:27,080 Speaker 2: understands what balance of payments is, and you too can 458 00:24:27,160 --> 00:24:29,040 Speaker 2: get your gold out of the United States before the 459 00:24:29,040 --> 00:24:31,720 Speaker 2: government realizes that your communists and like would have like 460 00:24:31,840 --> 00:24:33,960 Speaker 2: locked it down and frozen it and taken the gold. 461 00:24:34,359 --> 00:24:39,480 Speaker 2: So this has been It Could Happen Here, the podcast 462 00:24:39,480 --> 00:24:43,160 Speaker 2: that helps you take your country's gold reserves like che guevara, 463 00:24:43,400 --> 00:24:45,760 Speaker 2: Oh Boy. 464 00:24:47,760 --> 00:24:50,240 Speaker 1: It could Happen Here is a production of cool Zone Media. 465 00:24:50,440 --> 00:24:53,520 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from cool Zone Media, visit our website 466 00:24:53,560 --> 00:24:56,119 Speaker 1: cool Zonemedia dot com, or check us out on the 467 00:24:56,160 --> 00:25:00,160 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 468 00:25:00,560 --> 00:25:02,480 Speaker 1: You can now find sources for It Could Happen Here 469 00:25:02,520 --> 00:25:05,480 Speaker 1: listed directly in episode descriptions. Thanks for listening.