I heard Ron Paul say the fed has never been audited but I also saw a video of a hearing in the House discussing the audit in 2008 showing 8 Trillion gone - unaccountable and one in 2012 where now 16 Trillion that simply gone.
Things like that accounting discrepancy
can show up without an audit; an audit would actually try to find the where and how that money went, as well as inspecting the entire financial integrity.
The Fed is now holding some $6 trillion worth of bond purchases. That is a stunning number. And its money that was created out of thin air. How can they unwind that position without significant disruption to the market, not to mention the inflationary consequences?
Over time, the Fed has gone down the proverbial slippery slope with intervention after intervention. IMHO this “mission creep” has dangerously morphed into manipulating the stock market. This may have started off with the intention of stabilizing shakey markets but in its recent drive to create a wealth effect to stimulate the economy, it has distorted normal market mechanisms. The market is clearly now more Fed driven than valuation driven. The market has become addicted to the financial equivalent of heroin.
I agree with Thor that at some point the true depth of the Fed’s manipulation will eventually become evident.