The Congress shall have power… To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign coin, and fix the standard of weights and measures;

The NY Times reports that House Financial Chairman Barney Frank has met in private with Ben Bernanke to plan strategies for bracing against the overwhelming popular demand to audit the private Federal Reserve, voiced– piercingly for Bernanke– in Rep. Ron Paul’s bill, now with some 300 co-sponsors.Frank’s part in meeting was to urge Bernanke to face reality– “Mr. Frank warned that he might have to embrace a version of Mr. Paul’s bill,” wrote the Times– now it was time to consider compromises.However, responding to Bernanke’s top concerns, Barney Frank “vowed” that:“he would “wall off” deliberations on basic monetary policy, and delay the release of information about the Fed’s financial operations to prevent traders from capitalizing on its moves.”Bernanke’s “apocalyptic” fear of H.R. 1207 and the accompanying rise in public interest in the Fed, as the NY Times describes it, underscores the drastic survival mechanism of an institution that has historically relied on the secrecy provided by its bland exterior.Mr. Bernanke initially reacted to the bill in almost apocalyptic terms. The G.A.O. audits, he told a House hearing in late June, could lead to a Congressional “takeover” of monetary policy that would be “highly destructive to the stability of the financial system, the dollar and our national economic situation.”Why this fear has lingered overhead for so long may be simply because he knows that his thin-air empire can’t withstand a Constitutional examination. Bernanke worries about a “takeover” by Congress because he knows that it alone has the Constitutional authority to oversee the issuance of currency.As Alex Jones’ Fall of the Republic reveals, Ben Bernanke told Congress in no uncertain terms, that an examination of its monetary policy would amount to a ‘takeover’ and instilled the fear that it would trigger further economic devastation.The Federal Reserve should not have “independent” autonomy to direct the financial commitments of a nation, print its money at will and risk its stability.Of course Congress’ constitutional power over money is enumerated in Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution:If Bernanke is looking over its shoulder, it is because he knows the Fed’s days are numbered, and that any light (via even a soft audit) will only serve to further expose the improper occupation of the nation’s financial instruments by a private, self-interested global banking cartel.“The Fed faces populist anger from left-wing Democrats and right-wing Republicans about its power and secrecy… It was alarming enough that… “End the Fed,” had just landed on the best-seller lists.”Bernanke and his masters are obviously very unsettled by such a significant public outcry, and, as the NY Times notes, the fact that Ron Paul’s ‘End the Fed’ has reached the best-seller list.-----Got comments? Email me, dammit! Permanent link for this article which can be used on any website: