Andrew Sabin on Precious Metals and Political Stagnation

Andrew Sabin, President of Sabin Metal Corp, the largest refiner of precious metals in the United States, spoke to Benzinga Radio on Friday and discussed everything from his own company to the Obama administration. “We take anything that contains precious metal, recycle it, and give the metal back to the customer,” Sabin said. “For example, our biggest base is all of the large oil companies. There are rules with hazardous waste. You are not allowed to keep it on your premises for more than a year. We are what we call a zero discharge company. We don't release anything into the air or water. Everything is scrubbed. Very few companies can do what we do. We do everything.” Sabin said that he got his start in the business through his father, who was in scrap metal. “That business was dying,” he said “I saw some opportunities coming into the business in 1968. Printed circuit boards were painted with gold and companies were throwing them in waste dumps. It was a different world. It's hard to believe where gold is now compared to then.” Sabin is very adamant that gold is a currency, and he has a very low opinion of President Obama. “I wouldn't be surprised if some of these central banks that are in trouble, like Greece, Ireland and Portugal, have sold off a little bit of gold to liquidity. But I don't know that,” Sabin said. “As long as these countries are printing money, the long term outlook for gold is very positive. We have a real problem with this economy. We have by far the worst President in the history of this country. There's nothing close. Until you have confidence in the government, until you know what you'll be paying in tax and what the regulations are going to be, nobody is going to do anything. There is so much money in this country, but nobody is going to invest until they know what the rules will be five years from now. There can't be demand from consumers because they're afraid to invest when they don't know what the future holds. That's Obama's problem. He doesn't understand you can't create jobs until you create consumption.” With that in mind then, what is the solution? “The problem you have in politics is that the two sides are so far apart that, unless you bring in a President who brings in some sort of compromise, you'll have four more years of nothing happening. People like Bachmann, who are entrenched in their right wing principles and won't move an inch, won't get anything done as President, in my opinion. Romney's not my favorite, but he's the only one who could forge some compromise. We need tax reform and a flat tax would be great.” Finally, we asked Sabin whether he thinks Operation Twist will be of any use. “I don't think it'll make a difference at all,” he said. “It's sad. All these mistakes are making me rich [because expansionary monetary policy is driving up commodity prices]. I think a lot of people agree – Obama gets very bad advice. I don't think there's anything left for the Fed to do.”