Great Vocal Majority Podcast

Obama's Vision of Fundamental Transformation (Part 1) Volume Notes:

Part 1 of a series of podcasts providing a detailed exposition of Obama's vision for America.

Just prior to his election in 2008, Senator Obama declared, "We are five days away from fundamentally transforming the United States of America."  Although this statement was kept deliberately vague at the time, now, nearly six years into his tenure as President, Americans are still not quite sure of Obama's vision for America.

This podcast begins to define the Obama vision by examining several Supreme Court decisions and what they may tell of of how Obama sees America and the role of Presidential leadership.

Sources:

"United States v Jones"

"Arkansas Fish & Game v United States" 

"EPA v Sackett"

A discussion on reforming the Electoral College.  If done carefully, a reformation of the Electoral College would increase voter turnout and interest in Presidential elections.

The Founders envisioned a decentralized national vote.  The winner-takes-all aspect of the Presidential election, state by state, tends to discourage voters living in states that lean heavily toward one political party.  They see their vote as a waste because their candidate cannot win.  Democrat voters in Texas, Republican voters in New York and California are discouraged from voting as a result.

If the Electoral College were reformed, voters would be voting for the winner of the electoral vote represented by their Congressional district.  The winner of the statewide vote would earn two additional electoral votes.

This kind of electoral architecture would eliminate the whole concept of "swing states".  It would give greater weight to the vote of every voter.

Tony gives a brief overview of the economy, how taxes affect economic growth, and the four ways to spend money.

This podcast discusses the declining nature of representation in a country where the population is growing.  While it is in the finest traditions of American society and culture to open our doors to any and all peaceful people seeking to become part of the American family, population growth causes interesting challenges for national representative government.

As the elected leaders in the House of Representatives and the Senate represent larger and more diverse numbers of people, discontent with that representation is a predictable result.  It should not be any surprise at all, therefore, when grass roots movements arise like the Tea Party and Occupy movements, seeking more effective representation.

The solution to these problems is embodied in our Constitution today.  It's Federalism.  That is, the decentralized state and local governments envisioned by our Founders, particularly Thomas Jefferson, who believed that government closest to the people was best, since it was closest to their concerns.