| | | President Trump has mentioned the "golden age" in public remarks about 14 times during the last 100 days, averaging roughly once per week since his inauguration.
Notable Examples- January 20, 2025: Inaugural Address - "The golden age of America begins right now" 5 2.
- March 4, 2025: Address to Congress - "Six weeks ago, I stood under the Capitol dome and proclaimed the start of America's Golden Age" 3.
- March 2025: End of Congressional Address - "the golden age of America has only just begun"
Transitioning the U.S. to a gold-backed dollar would require coordinated policy shifts, legislative action, and systemic restructuring.
Phase 1: Executive Action (2025–2026)- Gold Reserve Audit
- Conduct a full audit of Fort Knox and Federal Reserve gold reserves (8,133 metric tons) to verify holdings and assess market-value gaps (booked at $422/oz vs. ~$2,000/oz market price) 4 6.
- Likely led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, with private-sector partners like Elon Musk proposing blockchain-based verification 4.
- Presidential Commission on Monetary Reform
- Establish a Gold Commission (mirroring Reagan’s 1981 initiative) to recommend:
- Optimal gold-to-dollar ratio (historical precedent: $35/oz in 1933 vs. potential $10,000/oz today) 1 6.
- Transition framework for partial or full gold convertibility 3 5.
- Gold-Bond Pilot Program
- Issue 50-year Treasury bonds convertible to gold at maturity, as proposed by Judy Shelton.
- Initial offering: $50 billion, leveraging Fort Knox reserves to test investor appetite and price stability mechanisms 2 4.
Phase 2: Legislative & Federal Reserve Overhaul (2026–2027)- Gold Standard Restoration Act
- Legislation mandating gradual gold backing for M1 money supply (currently $2.1 trillion vs. $400 billion gold value at $2,000/oz) 1 3.
- Key provisions:
- Redefine the dollar as 1/1000th of an ounce of gold (˜$2,000/dollar initially).
- Require 40% gold backing for new currency issuance 5 7.
- Federal Reserve Restructuring
- Strip the Fed’s dual mandate (employment + inflation), focusing solely on price stability 5.
- Ban Fed purchases of mortgage-backed securities and corporate debt 5.
- Transition the Fed into a “gold reserve custodian” role 1 4.
Phase 3: Systemic Transition (2027–2028)- Dual-Currency System
- Introduce parallel gold-backed and fiat dollars, allowing markets to adjust gradually 3 6.
- Set fixed exchange rates between gold-backed dollars and Federal Reserve Notes (e.g., 1:1 initially) 3.
- International Coordination
- Negotiate with BRICS nations to recognize gold-backed dollars in trade settlements, countering their gold-CBDC initiatives 6 7.
- Leverage IMF Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) to integrate gold into global reserves 6.
Technical & Political Challenges- Valuation Volatility: Gold’s market price fluctuates daily; a fixed parity risks speculative attacks (e.g., 1960s London Gold Pool collapse) 3 7.
- Reserve Shortfalls: Covering M1 would require acquiring ~800 tonnes of gold at current prices-nearly 10% of global annual production 1 3.
- Congressional Hurdles: Passing the Gold Standard Restoration Act faces opposition from deficit-spending advocates 1 4.
- Fed Resistance: Central bankers like Jerome Powell oppose constraints on monetary flexibility 5 7.
Projected Outcomes- Immediate: Gold prices spike (potentially to $3,000+/oz) amid revaluation speculation 6 7.
- Long-Term:
- Annual inflation capped at 1–2% if fully implemented 1.
- Reduced government deficit spending (gold limits fiat expansion) 1 3.
- Strengthened dollar hegemony but heightened trade tensions with gold-accumulating BRICS nations 6 7.
This transition remains theoretical, but Trump-era policymakers are actively debating its feasibility. As Judy Shelton noted: “Gold convertibility would signal a return to monetary integrity-but getting there requires overcoming decades of entrenched fiat thinking” |
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