Liberty Dollar says raid was political

The founder of the Liberty Dollar, which had its Evansville, Ind., offices raided by federal authorities recently, says it appears the investigation was timed to damage the campaign of U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, who is running for president.

"It defies logic to think that it would be unrelated, quite honestly," Bernard von NotHaus told the Evansville Courier Press. "I think they knew about it … It does look suspect. And I think that's an infringement on his campaign. Because now we don't have the 60,000 Ron Pauls to go out there to publicize his campaign."

Von NotHaus earlier said the government raid on his company was just the "first battle of a long war that I intend to win!"

The company makes and distributes Liberty Dollar barter currency in various denominations and announced that it had been closed down by a raid of FBI and U.S. Secret Service officers who confiscated gold, silver, platinum, medallions, documents, "everything but the desks and chairs."

"For approximately six hours they took all the gold, all the silver, all the platinum, and almost two tons of Ron Paul Dollars that were just delivered… They also took all the files and computers and froze our bank accounts," von NotHaus wrote in an urgent notification of the situation to supporters.

The Peace Dollar, by Liberty Dollar

Von Nothaus described the Ron Paul medallions as campaign support buttons, even though Paul campaign officials have paid little attention to the events.

Von NotHaus told the newspaper he got to know Paul and found they shared views on several issues. The newspaper reported he donated the maximum he could, $2,300, to the campaign, but still wanted to do more.

So the Ron Paul medallion was generated.

Von NotHaus said the result was a lot of "buzz" that was created for the campaign.

Jesse Benton, Paul's communications director, told the newspaper the impact of the stunt was minimal, and he doubted whether the raid was political.

Von NotHaus said seizing the 60,000 Paul medallions, which had been sold, was like destroying campaign posters. "Would anybody suspect that maybe that was politically motivated?" he said.

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Federal authorities in the U.S. attorney's office in North Carolina, to whom WND was referred when the FBI and Secret Service were questioned, declined to release information about their case, although they admitted the action took place.

The U.S. Mint, some weeks earlier, had posted on its website a warning that "the use of these gold and silver ... 'Liberty Dollar' medallions as circulating money is federal crime."

"The United States Mint urges consumers who are considering the purchase or use of these items to be aware that they are not genuine United States Mint bullion coins and they are not legal tender," the Mint said.

"'Liberty Dollar' medallions are specifically intended to be used as current money in order to limit reliance on, and to compete with the circulating coinage of the United States," the Mint said. "Consequently, prosecutors with the United States Department of Justice have concluded that use of ... 'Liberty Dollar' medallions violates [federal law.]"

Von NotHaus challenges that with the posting of correspondence on his website from Edmond C. Moy, director of the U.S. Mint, that his company's paper certificates are "not covered by the Title 18, Section 486 and hence legal."

He said a class action lawsuit is being assembled for those who had purchased them and were awaiting delivery or held paper certificates or digital Liberty Dollars, and a legal defense fund will be established soon to pursue the case.

Forum participants on the issue didn't hold back on their feelings:

"I'm so tired of people claiming that the U.S. is still the best country in the world, love it or leave it, etc. FREEDOM IS NOT RELATIVE! You are free or you are a slave. We are slaves. I'm in the 15 percent salve bracket. Which one are you in?" wrote "New Guard."

Company information says von NotHaus developed the Liberty Dollar in 1998 as an "inflation-proof" alternative currency to Federal Reserve Notes. The U.S. government, however, historically has taken a dim view of anything monetary that could be perceived as substituting for Federal Reserve Notes.

Authorities have attacked such alternatives as counterfeiting, while supporters of such bartering tools attack the Federal Reserve Notes as fakes.

That opinion was shared by Lance Haverkamp, who joined in a forum at the Courier-Press newspaper on the issue.

"Do you realize how stupid it is to say the green stuff is 'real' and the gold & silver is 'fake'… You must work for the government!" he wrote.

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