Obama’s “Operation Chokepoint” Cuts Off “Icky” Businesses from Banks
By: Clint Siegner
GoldSeek.com
Tuesday, 31 March 2015
Ever hear of the clandestine program hatched by Obama’s Department of Justice called Operation Choke Point? It’s a little-known effort to make it much more difficult for businesses to operate if they dare to sell Americans guns or precious metals.
Operation Chokepoint is strangling your freedom and you need to know about it.
Long ago, bureaucrats began dreaming of the day when the complete transaction records of every citizen would be available for review. Cash had been souring those dreams. Individuals used it routinely and enjoyed the ability to buy and sell in confidence.
So the war on financial privacy was launched in 1970 with the Bank Secrecy Act. It targeted cash specifically by requiring banks to report transactions involving more than $10,000.
Politicians sold the law to the public as an important tool for thwarting drug dealers and tax cheats.
Fast forward thirty years to the turn of the century, and the vilification of privacy was all but complete. Electronic payments — credit cards and debit cards — had become standard. Anything not paid for with a card, especially larger purchases, tended to be handled by check. So walking into, or out of, a bank with a large amount of cash was highly unusual and sure to arouse suspicion.
In the aftermath of 9/11, officials seized the opportunity to demand even more reporting. They added terrorists to the roster of villains who prefer cash and included provisions in the Patriot Act requiring all merchants (not just banks) to file Form 8300 on transactions of $10,000 or more. And they demanded merchants begin filing the Orwellian “Suspicious Activity Report” on any transaction the merchant judges to be “suspicious.”
By and large, however, bureaucrats remain focused on the banks as a cornerstone in their plans. Reliant on bureaucrats for taxpayer bailouts when things go bad, bankers have a long history of cooperating with the federal government (and vice versa). They have the records, and, in the modern age, people find banks just about indispensable.
This opens up all kinds of new possibilities. You see, bureaucrats aren’t just dreaming about total information. They’re dreaming of total control. And they aren’t necessarily going to bother with a public forum, such as Congress, to get it.
Obama’s Justice Department Is Trying to Hassle Gun and Precious Metals Dealers
The Rest…HERE
