Former congressman and current congressional nominee Alan Grayson (D-Orlando) could chalk about another big win. On Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Audit the Fed bill (H.R. 459), in which Grayson had a major hand.
In 2010, Grayson teamed up with Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) to get similar legislation passed but the bill was stripped down to only allow for a one-time audit of the Fed’s activities during the financial crisis of 2007-2008. The audit revealed that a secret $26 trillion in bailout money had tone to foreign central banks and Wall Street favorites.
Reacting to the passage of H.R. 459, Grayson had this to say:
“This is an excellent example of good government, and a model of what we can accomplish if Republicans and Democrats put aside their differences. I have always said, ‘I don’t support Democratic ideas, or Republican ideas. I support good ideas.’ The Audit the Fed bill is a very good idea.”
While in Congress, Grayson resurrected Paul’s bill which had been languishing in Congress for 26 years and gave it new life. He walked the bill around the House Floor for months and explained the importance of the need to audit the Fed. Grayson got nearly 100 Democrats to sponsor Paul’s bill in 2010. And almost all of the 89 Democrats who voted in favor of H.R. 459 was a member that he convinced to co-sponsor the bill back in 2010.
However, notwithstanding the wide-spread bi-partisan support for H.R. 459, it is doubtful that the bill will be pursued in the Senate anytime soon as, some Democrats believe the House Bill goes too far, given that it doesn’t limit the focus of the Fed audit.
Grayson is the Democratic nominee for the new U.S. House of Representatives District 9, which encompasses Orange, Osceola and Polk counties.
