"Revealed" in the suit is a mite strong, I think. Alleged in the suit is as strong as I'd allow - and many of the allegations of fact in the complaint, and the opposition to the motions to dismiss, rely on inference, and is internally contradictory, while others are contradicted by easily available public records of which the court is allowed to take judicial notice.
For example, Howe argues that when the US 1) withdrew from the Bretton Woods agreement, and 2) ceased to set a statutory value for gold and 3) allowed private citizens to own gold and trade gold on COMEX, and 4) allowed the Treasury to mint gold coins but sell them at the market price plus costs, that "Congress has effectively declared that purposes of federal law, gold is no longer money but an ordinary commodity whose value against the dollar should be determined by free market forces." He's entitled to argue that, but it's contradicted by the public records of the US Treasury, which has always its gold stock as part of its international reserves.
treas.gov
The ESF (Exchange Stabilization Fund) exists to - let's take a wild guess here - stabilize exchange rates.
ny.frb.org
31 U.S.C. § 5302 - Stabilizing exchange rates and arrangements.
(a)(1) The Department of the Treasury has a stabilization fund. The fund is available to carry out this section, section 18 of the Bretton Woods Agreement Act (22 U.S.C. 286e-3), and section 3 of the Special Drawing Rights Act (22 U.S.C. 286o), and for investing in obligations of the United States Government those amounts in the fund the Secretary of the Treasury, with the approval of the President, decides are not required at the time to carry out this section. Proceeds of sales and investments, earnings, and interest shall be paid into the fund and are available to carry out this section. However, the fund is not available to pay administrative expenses.
(2) Subject to approval by the President, the fund is under the exclusive control of the Secretary, and may not be used in a way that direct control and custody pass from the President and the Secretary. Decisions of the Secretary are final and may not be reviewed by another officer or employee of the Government.
(b) Consistent with the obligations of the Government in the International Monetary Fund on orderly exchange arrangements and a stable system of exchange rates, the Secretary or an agency designated by the Secretary, with the approval of the President, may deal in gold, foreign exchange, and other instruments of credit and securities the Secretary considers necessary. However, a loan or credit to a foreign entity or government of a foreign country may be made for more than 6 months in any 12-month period only if the President gives Congress a written statement that unique or emergency circumstances require the loan or credit be for more than 6 months.
(c)(1) By the 30th day after the end of each month, the Secretary shall give the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate a detailed financial statement on the stabilization fund showing all agreements made or renewed, all transactions occurring during the month, and all projected liabilities.
(2) The Secretary shall report each year to the President and Congress on the operation of the fund.
(d) A repayment of any part of the first subscription payment of the Government to the International Monetary Fund, previously paid from the stabilization fund, shall be deposited in the Treasury as a miscellaneous receipt.
U.S. Code 31 U.S.C. § 5302
Howe seems to be arguing that the Federal Reserve and the Treasury engage in transactions involving gold in order to set the price of gold. He's totally ignoring the other side of the equation - the price of gold is measured in money - it's the job of the Federal Reserve and the Treasury to stabilize the exchange rate. He has the right to not be happy with the way they do it, but he has no right to have a court tell them to do it any differently, IMO.
He may have a claim against the BIS vis-a-vis the price of his private shares which they have called in, I have no idea, but I doubt they are amenable to suit in the US.
I'll pass on the howlers, like US foreign policy in sub-Saharan Africa. My guess is that he got a law student to help him draft this. The argument that conventions and treaties are subject to desuetude is garbage - it's a tenet of international law that treaties do not expire - they must be clearly and unambiguously abrogated. The passage of time may allow a nation to argue that the treaty no longer applies, but a private citizan may not.
I do have a question - is there any country in the world which uses gold as part of its official currency? |
