Mar-a-Lago Trump and the Vault of Gold
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(Editorial Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of SavingAdvice.com, its parent company or staff. You should also know that this commentary was written at the request of Elon Musk, well, sort-of. Musk said at a Conservative Political Action Committee meeting (CPAC) last weekend, “the left wants to make comedy illegal – ya’ know”. He then lamented that you “can’t make any fun of anything”, and suggested that some unspecified body should “Legalize Comedy.” I am only trying to do my bit. You might have expected a story of adventure featuring Harrison Ford. The story is called “Mar-a Lago Trump and the vaults of Gold” and it features President Donald Trump, his trusted sidekick
Meme Musk . That makes it an international undertaking since Musk is a dual citizen of South Africa and Canada.(
Editorial Note: the reference to the president as “Mar-a-Lago Trump” harkens back to his home/private club in Florida. Musk created his nickname. At the CPAC event, he referred to himself as “I am becoming meme”. Click the link or search YouTube to view a segment of the event. You may want to avoid the clip if you find a middle-aged man in an undersized shirt dancing with a chainsaw offensive. ()Trump and The Vault of Gold — Or Not
Cue familiar Indiana Jones movie theme music.
Our tale opens with a close-up of a man wearing a blue suit, his red necktie hanging below his belt. The camera moves up and up until it reaches the face of Donald Trump. Elon Musk bumps into a wall behind him because he can’t see in the dark with his sunglasses on. Behind him, Elon Musk bumps into a wall because he can not see in the dark with his sunglasses on.
Suddenly there is a loud clanking sound followed by the noise of a gigantic vault door opening.
There is a burst of light as Trump’s lantern shines on thousands of gold bars.
What’s Really Going On
Ok. This might make a great opening to a fictional film (Steven Spielberg, call me!). But it does not explain what is behind Trump’s pledge to inspect the gold vault at Fort Knox?
Several times over the past week, Trump has said he would send Musk or bring him on an investigation of gold reserves housed at Fort Knox.
Flying back to Washington last week, a reporter asked the president if Musk would be making cuts at the Pentagon.
Either avoiding the question or misinterpreting it, Trump responded that Musk would be inspecting gold reserves at the Kentucky military base.
Asked why, Trump said, “
To make sure the gold is there.” During a joint press conference with French President
Emmanuel Macron on Monday, Trump elaborated “We’re actually going to Fort Knox to see if the gold is there,” said Trump, “because maybe somebody stole the gold, tons of gold.”
What Started The Case Of The Vanished Gold
As with many things in Trump, MAGA and DOGE worlds – the idea of gold disappearing from Ft. Knox began with a conspiracy theory on right-wing radio and podcasts. That was enough for
Musk who has been posting about it regularly.“Who is confirming that gold wasn’t stolen from Ft. Knox?” Posted Musk.
To get an answer,
Musk might have asked Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. “We do
an audit every year and all the gold is present and accounted for,” Bessent said in a recent interview. Bessert even offered an invitation to any member of Congress who would like to tour the vault, to call him to schedule an inspection.
If that wasn’t enough, Musk or Trump could ask Steve Mnuchin, who was treasury secretary during the first Trump administration. Mnuchin and several members of Congress, including Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin, visited the vault in 2017
Other motives
The President has said that an inspection of Fort Knox is to verify that there is enough gold. However, there might be other motives for such a visit.
Trump’s poll numbers are trending down from
an all-time personal high achieved in late January. The majority of tracking polls at that time showed a favorability rating below 50%. In the most recent Economist/YouGov survey (February 23-25), 47 percent of respondents rated him favorably. At the same time, 50 percent view him unfavorably.Look a little farther down in the Economist/YouGov poll and you will find that Elon Musk is even less popular than Trump. He is viewed positively by 43% of respondents while 50% disapprove.Bombasts from Trump are often a means of seizing the political narrative to distract us from more serious problems. It’s like trying to distract the cat with a shiny object. Gold And Money
Some may believe that our currency is linked to the gold standard. This is the monetary standard in which currency value is tied to a set value for gold. It is not. The United States only used the gold standard for a short time, up until 1971. If we were allowed the option to exchange cash for gold we would need to act quickly. Bullion Vault says that if every American wanted to convert their checking and savings account money into gold, the Treasury would run out after only 3.5 per cent was redeemed
. Money is valuable because we think it’s valuable. Money is backed by the “full trust and credit” of governments that issue it. The U.S. dollar is used as the standard currency against which other currencies are measured – globally.
National stability is the key to a currency such as the U. S. Dollar. According to the U. S. Mint, only about half the nation’s gold reserve (147.3 million ounces) is stored at Fort Knox
. The remaining gold is stored in facilities from West Point to Denver
. Then again, if Trump and/or Musk went to all the reserves at once, we would not be able to make sequels for “Mara-Lardo: Trump and the Vault of Gold”.Read More:
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