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To Preserve, Protect, and Defend the Soul of America

To Preserve, Protect, and Defend the Soul of America

Written by: Sue B. Howell
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In 2026, the United States turns two hundred and fifty years old. Anniversaries of this size invite two very different kinds of commemoration. One looks backward with a fixed and comfortable pride — flags, fireworks, a story about founding that ends before it gets complicated. The other treats the anniversary as an occasion for the harder, more useful work: an honest accounting of what the country has built, what it has broken, and what it still owes the people living inside it.

This series is an attempt at the second kind.

To Preserve, Protect, and Defend the Soul of America is daily podcast built around a simple premise: that the "soul" of a nation is not a slogan but a set of institutions, habits, and unresolved arguments — and that understanding any of them requires looking closely rather than looking away.

We organize the podcast episodes around the themes like healthcare, law, education, local government, culture, sports, family, food, science, and the hundred quieter systems that determine how Americans actually live. Every episode is targeted to regular Americans; no jargon, no academic throat-clearing, and no obligation to land on one side of an argument rather than describe it fairly.

The episodes are not bound by a single argument but a single method: look at an American institution as it actually operates, not as its founders imagined it, and ask who bears the cost of the difference. The oath this series takes its title from — sworn by every American president since 1789 — doesn't distinguish between the parts of the country that are working and the parts that are not. It asks for the whole thing, preserved, protected, and defended, which is only possible if the whole thing is first looked at honestly.

To Preserve, Protect, and Defend the Soul of America, this podcast doesn't just skim the daily headlines—it exposes the structural crises, deliberate policy choices, and profit-driven systems that have fundamentally broken American public institutions. If you are tired of partisan talking points and want to understand the actual mechanics of how this country operates, you have found your new obsession.

Tune In and Wake Up

The Soul of America is rigorous, eye-opening, and endlessly compelling. It is designed for listeners who want to understand the actual mechanics of regulatory capture, systemic inequality, and the modern culture wars. If you want to know exactly how the system was built, who it actually serves, and why it feels like it is breaking apart, this is your definitive audio guide.

Subscribe now to The Soul of America wherever you get your podcasts—because you can't fix a broken machine until you understand how it works.

To purchase the book series, visit: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H8MJDDGQ

Sue B. Howell 2026
Episodes
  • The Zip-Code Lottery - American School Funding and Its Discontents

    The Zip-Code Lottery - American School Funding and Its Discontents
    Jul 18 2026

    The episode investigates the systemic inequality of the American educational landscape, primarily focusing on how local property taxes create a "zip-code lottery" for K-12 funding. The podcast contrasts a fragmented public school system—where resources are tied to neighborhood wealth—with a world-leading higher education sector driven by competitive research and prestige. Legal analysis centers on the 1973 Rodriguez Supreme Court decision, which effectively ended federal attempts to mandate equal funding and shifted reform efforts to the states. The narrative also examines the polarizing rise of charter schools, vouchers, and Education Savings Accounts as market-based responses to failing local districts. Ultimately, the podcast highlight a deep tension between the American ideal of local control and the pursuit of educational equity. This episode suggests that until the structural link between real estate and school budgets is broken, geographic location will continue to dictate a child's future.

    To Preserve, Protect, and Defend the Soul of America (30 book series)

    US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H8MJDDGQ

    UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0H8MJDDGQ

    To Preserve, Protect, and Defend the Soul of America: Volume One — America's Healthcare Crisis and Broken Public Institutions

    US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H8NLYNXP

    UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0H8NLYNXP

    Available across all Amazon Stores Worldwide
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    48 mins
  • The Broken Bench: Institutional Collapse of the Supreme Court

    The Broken Bench: Institutional Collapse of the Supreme Court
    Jul 17 2026

    The episode explores a profound legitimacy crisis currently facing the United States Supreme Court, marked by historic lows in public approval and confidence. It identifies five critical drivers of this decline: structural issues with lifetime tenure, the partisan erosion of nomination norms, high-profile ethical scandals, and controversial rulings that diverge from broad public consensus. The podcast examines how the ideological sorting of justices has transformed the bench into a perceived political battlefield rather than an impartial arbiter of law. To address these failures, the podcast evaluates various institutional reforms, such as term limits, Court expansion, and binding ethics codes, while weighing their constitutional viability. Ultimately, the podcast argues that the current instability is historically unique and requires deliberate structural repair to restore the judiciary's democratic authority.

    To Preserve, Protect, and Defend the Soul of America (30 book series)

    US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H8MJDDGQ

    UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0H8MJDDGQ

    To Preserve, Protect, and Defend the Soul of America: Volume One — America's Healthcare Crisis and Broken Public Institutions

    US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H8NLYNXP

    UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0H8NLYNXP

    Available across all Amazon Stores Worldwide
    Show More Show Less
    40 mins
  • A Nation Sick With Its Own Cure - The American Healthcare System and Why the USA Stands Alone

    A Nation Sick With Its Own Cure - The American Healthcare System and Why the USA Stands Alone
    Jul 16 2026

    The episode analyzes the uniquely expensive and fragmented nature of the American healthcare system compared to other developed nations. It argues that the United States lacks a centrally designed architecture, having instead developed through historical accidents and political compromises that prioritized private industry interests over universal access. While defenders of the status quo point to medical innovation and shorter wait times for the wealthy, the sources highlight the devastating reality of medical bankruptcy and debt, which affect even the insured. High costs are attributed not to higher utilization of services, but to inflated prices, administrative complexity, and the lack of government negotiation. Ultimately, the podcast illustrates how cultural individualism, intensive lobbying, and racial disparities have historically blocked the adoption of more efficient universal models found in countries like Sweden or the United Kingdom.
    Show More Show Less
    59 mins
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