The Case Against the Fed by: Murray N. Rothbard

The Case Against the Fed is a scathing indictment of the Federal Reserve System, arguing that it operates as a banking cartel that enriches financial elites at the public’s expense. Murray N. Rothbard meticulously traces the history of money and banking, exposing how the Fed manipulates the money supply, fuels inflation, and enables reckless government expansion through deficit spending. With clear, incisive analysis, he dissects the mechanics of fractional reserve banking and central banking, illustrating how they create economic instability rather than preventing it. Rothbard makes a compelling case that the Federal Reserve is not just unnecessary but actively harmful to a free-market economy, advocating instead for sound money free from government control.

About the Author:
Murray N. Rothbard (1926–1995) was an American economist, historian, and political theorist, widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in Austrian economics and modern libertarian thought. A student of Ludwig von Mises, Rothbard was a leading advocate for free markets and a relentless critic of central banking, state intervention, and coercive power structures. As a co-founder of the Cato Institute and the Ludwig von Mises Institute, he played a key role in shaping the libertarian movement. His seminal works, including Man, Economy, and State, The Mystery of Banking, and For a New Liberty, challenge the legitimacy of government-controlled monetary systems and promote a society based on voluntary exchange and private property. His unwavering opposition to the Federal Reserve and fiat currency, as exemplified in The Case Against the Fed, continues to influence libertarians, Austrian economists, and critics of centralized financial power to this day.