Ron Paul Fed Lecture Series

Rep. Ron Paul sponsored this Congressional lecture on "Why Was the Federal Reserve Created?", the introductory lecture in a three part series on the Federal Reserve System for Congressional staff. As a continuing educational tool this lecture was filmed and is provided to the public. The lecture was delivered by Dr. George Selgin, Professor of Economics at the Terry School of Business at the University of Georgia and author of a number of books on money and banking, such as "Bank Deregulation and Monetary Order" and "Good Money."

Prof. Selgin provides a short but comprehensive explanation of the institutional drawbacks of the United States banking system during the 19th century and how this fueled desire for financial reform. Unfortunately, as Prof. Selgin goes on to describe, the solution of allowing a free market in banking was rejected and instead another layer of government regulation was placed on the banking sector in the form of the Federal Reserve System.

"Why Was the Fed Created?" with George Selgin -- Ron Paul Fed Lecture Series, Pt 1/3

As a continuing educational tool this lecture was filmed and is provided to the public. The lecture was delivered by James Grant, founder and editor of Grant's Interest Rate Observer and a frequent commentator on financial news networks.

Mr. Grant's lecture summarizes the methods the Federal Reserve uses in its attempt to manage the economy through the conduct of monetary policy, dissecting the euphemistic language behind the Fed's actions and describing in detail the problems with the Fed's endeavor to be an "economic seer." Mr. Grant also bridges the gap between the lectures on the pre-Fed era and the Fed's future by describing the evolution of the Fed over its one hundred year history.

"What Does the Fed Do?" with James Grant -- Ron Paul Fed Lecture Series, Pt 2/3