This is a variant on what could be called the Mugabe Solution. Via cnn.com:
Sovereign governments such as the United States can print new money. However, there’s a statutory limit to the amount of paper currency that can be in circulation at any one time.
Ironically, there’s no similar limit on the amount of coinage. A little-known statute gives the secretary of the Treasury the authority to issue platinum coins in any denomination. So some commentators have suggested that the Treasury create two $1 trillion coins, deposit them in its account in the Federal Reserve and write checks on the proceeds.
Heh. A $1 Trillion dollar coin. Heh heh. Two of ’em, even. Heh heh heh.
Of course, then the dollar tanks, gas goes to $10 a gallon (but bye-bye trade deficit when our now low-cost exports hit the world!).
But still. How’d ya like to find one o’ them under the couch cushions?
I think we just need more counterfeiters.
… Let’s put Obama’s face on one side, and his 2008 campaign logo on the other. Can’cha just feel the outrage?
remember what happened to the trillion dollar bill.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T…
Would be a great answer to all those ‘I’ll keep my guns…. Etc, and you can keep the change’ bumper stickers.
I can only imagine something like the LOTR ring sequence… Except there would be 2, 2 coins to rule them all…
Wonder if china would sell us enough metal, or if we’d just outsource the whole thing… Labor rates and all.
And would the machine give the correct change?
First, after much google-ing around the Treasury and the Constitution I find no limit on the amount of paper currency that can be in circulation.
Second, since 97 percent of all $US money in existence today is electronic money, the statement has no relevance.
Third, a Trillion of new money would NOT cause Zimbabwe or Weimar like results.
Those countries raised their currency levels by 150 BILLION TIMES in one year, where a $Trillion in the US now would be 7 percent of the amount of money in circulation, if that.
The issue that the $Trillion coin raises is that we the people of the US live in a monetarily sovereign nation, and we the people have the power to create any amount of money that we need to employ the American people, WITHOUT ISSUING ANY DEBTS.
The sooner we embrace that reality, the sooner we can get back to work.
See: On the Workings of a Public Money System in Open Macro-Economies here:
http://www.monetary.org/yamagu…
Thanks,
Joe Bongiovanni
The Kettle Pond Institute
FYI I got the reference for the currency limitation from Jack Balkin, author of the original article being quoted everywhere.
http://www.law.cornell.edu/usc…
It says there a $300 Million limit on circulation.
The Fed’s latest H6 report says there about $970 BILLION in circulation.
http://www.federalreserve.gov/…