List of "Hopes" For President Obama

The inauguration that took place recently truly was an event for the ages. It has been a long time coming for one of the oldest classes of American people to have an American President rise from their ranks. Our Pilgrim ancestors arrived in 1607 in Virginia and not long after in 1619, our African ancestors began arriving. It is only natural that we have a president that represents this part of our heritage. However, President Obama has much more to do than to merely make history. He has an enormous task ahead of him. The hopes of all Americans, not just certain groups, are relying on him for leadership. And since “hope” has been one of President Obama’s major themes, I have a short list of “hopes” for the Obama Administration that I will post incrementally over the coming days. Here are a few to start:

Hope #1: That President Obama will not seek to solve our economic problems by putting irreversible policies or permanent government institutions in place in order to do so. Whatever policies he chooses, may they be derived from the past experience of our nation, consistent with the constitution, and not derived from the uncharted territory of abstract theory cooked up by technocrats, statists, and leftists.

Hope #2: That President Obama will not continue the ominous trend of governmental growth that we have seen under the Bush Administration. It is impossible to overstate the dangers of too large a federal government. When more and more power drains out of state governments and into the federal government, as sure as the law of cause and effect, you can expect a loss of personal freedom and a weakened national character. Here is a quote by Ezra Taft Benson (former LDS Prophet) from General Conference in 1958. If I could, I would have it printed on leaflets and dropped from airplanes in every city in America. “It is high time that we awakened to the dangers of excessive government in business and agriculture. It is time we realized the perils of too great a centralization of power, and too much dependence on public agencies.” Why is the drain of power out of state government and into the federal government so dangerous? President Benson continued, “Once power is concentrated, even for helpful purposes, it is all there, in one package, where it can be grabbed by those who may not be helpful in its use.” keep in mine, this was in 1958. Just think how much the government has grown since then. So my hope for Obama is that he will not seek to concentrate power in Washington, but diffuse power as is proper throughout the several states as the founders intended to be, and that he will keep the federal government's hands out of areas that the constitution intended to be matters for state governments such as education, health care, safety, moral issues, ect.

Hope #3: That President Obama will seek a policy of fair trade as opposed to the current policy of so-called “free” trade that has been sold to the American people like a can of snake oil. While it may be too late for the once great American auto industry and most other American industry, what little industry we have left we must endeavor to save and what industry we have lost we must endeavor to get back. The national security, sovereignty, and economic stability of our nation depend on it.

List to be continued