Morgan’s Role and the Creation of the Federal Reserve:

Panic of 1907:

• J.P. Morgan is alleged to have orchestrated the financial panic of 1907, causing widespread bank failures to create a perceived need for a central bank.
• Morgan intervened by propping up failing banks, using funds he effectively created, which further centralized banking power.

Theodore Roosevelt’s Response:

• President Roosevelt attempted to challenge Morgan’s monopolistic practices using the Sherman Antitrust Act but ultimately failed to prevent growing consolidation in the banking sector.

Creation of the Federal Reserve:

• The panic of 1907 is framed as a pretext for establishing the Federal Reserve System, which critics, including Bill Still, describe as a scheme to consolidate financial power and exploit the public.

Criticism of Banking Industry:

• Morgan and allied bankers are portrayed as manipulating economic systems and government policy to serve their own interests, sidelining the broader public good.

The text presents a narrative of deliberate financial manipulation by elites to entrench their dominance and create institutions like the Federal Reserve to perpetuate control.

Video and summary here: “20. J.P. Morgan and the Crash of 1907”
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