Presidential Hopeful Robert Kennedy Calls CBDCs Financial Slavery

Updated: 07 April 2023

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According to various media outlets, environmental lawyer and anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has filed paperwork with the United States Federal Commission to run for president in 2024 as a Democrat.

The filing was revealed on April 6 by his campaign treasurer, John E. Sullivan. Notably, Kennedy is anticipated to disclose his candidacy on April 19 in Boston. However, as news regarding his presidency circulated all over the media outlets, Kennedy took to Twitter to note his take on the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).

The Fed just announced it will introduce its “FedNow” Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) in July. CBDCs grease the slippery slope to financial slavery and political tyranny.

While cash transactions are anonymous, a #CBDC will allow the government to surveil all our private…

— Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) April 5, 2023

On April 5, he tweeted about the perceived dangers of CBDCs. His statement comes as the CBDC becomes an increasingly political issue in the United States. Kennedy noted:

“The Fed revealed it will introduce its “FedNow” CBDC in July. CBDCs grease the slippery slope to financial slavery and political tyranny.”

Recently, the Fed announced it would launch its FedNow payment services in July. However, in the first week of April, the Fed noted that it would commence the certification of participants for the service launch. Some early adopters will complete the customer testing and certification program to prepare for sending live transactions via the system. However, as much as the payment service is set to launch in July, it will not be classified as a CBDC. This is because it is seen as a competitor to a potential government-backed CBDC.

Additionally, Kennedy asserted that:

“While cash transactions are anonymous, a CBDC will allow the government to surveil all our privacy.”

Kennedy is the nephew of the late President John F. Kennedy and a long-term vaccine skeptic. He has promoted discredited allegations linking vaccines and autism. Notably, he founded the anti-vaccine organization Children’s Health Defense. Notably, he has rallied against the coronavirus vaccine and criticized the federal government’s handling of the pandemic. However, by running for the Oval Office, Kennedy would challenge the current president, Joe Biden, a Democrat.

Kennedy is Not Alone in Opposing CBDC

On the other hand, Kennedy is far from alone among the opposers of the CBDC. However, Kennedy has painted a worst-case scenario of a CBDC tied to a digital ID and social credit score by disregarding the various design options for a privacy-protecting CBDC. He has noted that the introduction of ‘FedNow” is the first step in banning and seizing bitcoin just like the Treasury did with gold 90 years ago.”

Further, the Republican governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, is also expected to jump into the 2024 presidential race. Standing in front of a podium at a March 20 press conference, he has given his remarks concerning the CBDC, noting:

“A CBDC enables the government with a direct view of all customer activities. They can get into society and exercise their agenda, and they will do it. So, what the CBDC is all about is surveilling Americans and controlling the behavior of Americans.”

Additionally, in February, Tom Emmer, the Republican Representative, presented the CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act to Congress. Emmer noted that this was an effort to protect Americans’ right to financial privacy. Notably, the bill could bar the Fed from issuing the digital dollar directly to anyone and prohibit the central bank from implementing monetary policy based on a CBDC. Additionally, Senator Ted Cruz introduced a bill to block the development of a retail CBDC.

In a March 21 statement, Cruz asserted that:

“it’s more important than ever to ensure U.S. policy on digital currencies protects financial privacy, maintains the dollar’s dominance, and cultivates innovation.”

Further, Cruz noted:

“CBDCs that fail to adhere to the three basic principles could enable an entity like the Federal Reserve to mobilize itself into a retail bank, collect personally identifiable information on users, and track their information.”

The federal government has no authority to unilaterally establish a central bank currency.

Read about my new bill in @FoxBusiness: Ted Cruz introduces bill blocking Fed from adopting central bank digital currencyhttps://t.co/LoX3u41nA4

— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) March 21, 2023

Senator Warren’s Support for CBDC

However, apart from the opposition, some leaders have supported CBDC. They include Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, who stipulates that” the digital currency from central banks has a great promise. Legitimate digital public money could enable the drive out of counterfeit digital private capital.” However, as Kennedy looks forward to shedding some light on his candidacy in Boston, he will likely run as a candidate in Massachusetts.