Legal Tender Quotes
At the time, there was no United States currency. Private banks in some of the states issued their own money. A dollar from Georgia might only be worth 75 cents in New York.
At the time any private bank could issue their own money. Private sector bankers thought it outrageous that the Congress should consider trampling on their rights to issue money. The solution that was finally adopted some years later was to use the Federal Reserve Board to control the money supply. It is independent of the Congress and the President but members are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. Our system, like no other system, is a compromise where neither the Government or the Private Sector controls the American money supply.
What Franklin Delano Roosevelt began, President Nixon would in 1971 complete by removing America from the gold standard entirely and ending fixed rates of exchange. There have been those in government who did not understand the modern economics of money and who believed that currency had to have a fixed rate of exchange for gold or silver otherwise it was worthless. Roosevelt had to deal with them as did Nixon later. Even into the 21st century when it had been amply demonstrated that the best currency in the world was the United States dollar precisely because it was backed up by the full faith and credit of the United States Government, there were those who complain that United States money is not sound currency and argue for the return of the gold standard.
