View From The Porch: Don't blame me; I voted for Coolidge.

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Don't blame me; I voted for Coolidge.

“Who’s your favorite president, Tam?”

“Coolidge.”

“Coolidge? Why? What did he do?”

“Nothing.”

…and did nothing deliberately and as a matter of policy, too.

Also, alleged to have sent vetoed bills back with the note “I see no constitutional authority for this law” scribbled on them. Where are you now that we need you, Silent Cal?

24 comments:

Ritchie said...: Actually, Coolidge short-circuited the depression of 1920 and paved the way for the Roaring Twenties. After that, ignorance was no longer an excuse.; 8:28 AM, March 19, 2013
DanH said...: The lack of activity probably explains the fact my high school completely ignored him in history class.
It's truly frightening how much more history I learned after school.; 8:39 AM, March 19, 2013
Anonymous said...: Grover Cleveland was another who stood out as sticking to Constitutional limits, and also being mostly ignored by my history books growing up.; 8:47 AM, March 19, 2013
Living in Babylon said...: My tag line in my emails at work is "Nobody ever listened themselves out of a job." -Calvin Coolidge

It's funnier if you're on the Inside of the call center business.; 9:05 AM, March 19, 2013
Boat Guy said...: Great concept; a President who held legislators accountable for Constitutional authority.
"Checks and Balances" anyone?; 9:08 AM, March 19, 2013
Bram said...: Coolidge is certainly this History Major's tops for the 20th Century.

He didn't really do nothing. He (and Harding) cut spending, paid down debt, and lowered taxes. He also seemed to call Hoover a fool on a regular basis. Unfortunately, the Republicans weren't listening.; 9:28 AM, March 19, 2013
Jennifer said...: What's that? No Constitutional authority. Be still my heart; 9:48 AM, March 19, 2013
Chalkie said...: He's my favorite too, and people just look at me weird when I say so. My belief that one of the underlying tenets of the constitution is that it is the role of the government to largely leave the people alone probably influenced my choice, but there it is.; 10:06 AM, March 19, 2013
Anonymous said...: One of my very favorite presidents too.

"Silent Cal" was also known for his terseness, presumably living by the words: "Better to be silent and be thought a fool than speak and have it confirmed."

My favorite Coolidge anecdote was Mr. C at a state dinner (which it is said, he loathed) and some political wife nearby him was going on and on while he stolidly pretended to be politely interested.

Eventually, having received no verbal encouragement she wound down, and stated that she had a bet with her husband the senator that she couldn't make the President say more than 3 words. (I.e. Mr. Senator has said no you can't and the voluble Mrs. Senator had said "sure i can")

Mr. Coolidge looked at her, eyes twinkling, SMILED very happily, and quietly said: "You lose."; 10:14 AM, March 19, 2013
cryptical said...: I've been meaning to read Amity Shlaes new biography of Coolidge, this just moved it up my list.; 10:18 AM, March 19, 2013
Borepatch said...: Well, Washington did have the coulda-been-King-but-wasn't thing going on, but "Nothing to report" is a fine exit speech for a POTUS.

Cleveland was pretty cool this way, too. Refused to let people harness the government for personal enrichment and so got voted out (before he got voted back in).; 11:24 AM, March 19, 2013
Mike Gallo said...: I'm still a fan of Jefferson abolishing the national bank (which needs to happen again, NOW), but Coolidge is a favorite for sure (especially given the time period).; 2:03 PM, March 19, 2013
Daddy Hawk said...: Well, that just cements a project I've been putting off for sometime. I've been meaning to go through and study our dear leaders in more depth than was ever covered in my history classes. That just gives me the motivation I needed.; 2:34 PM, March 19, 2013
Windy Wilson said...: I'm reading Shlaes's book right now. I can't look it up, but Coolidge said something to the effect that he has had a lot less trouble from the things he didn't say than from the things he said.; 3:09 PM, March 19, 2013
Jason said...: http://www.amazon.com/Coolidge-Amity-Shlaes/dp/0061967556/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1363748075&sr=1-1&keywords=coolidge; 10:56 PM, March 19, 2013
John Farrier said...: I'm fond of William Henry Harrison. Jacob Sullum wrote that he was an excellent president "because he left office before he could do much damage."; 11:10 PM, March 19, 2013
fast richard said...: I just started listening to the audio version of the new Amity Shlaes book this evening. I liked her previous book. She describes this as kind of a prequel.; 11:32 PM, March 19, 2013
Anonymous said...: @DanH —

Boomers and those younger have all grown up and were educated under the influence of intellectuals who worshipped FDR.

For them, the New Deal put smart technocrats back where they belonged, at the core of a federal government that was in charge of ever-larger parts of the society.

Many New Dealers got their first taste of what we today call liberal fascism when they worked in the Wilson administration. Wilson was the first president to systematically, and with malice of forethought, subvert the constitution, precisely because of the limits it placed on the state.

The most influential historians were those who celebrated the "bold, energetic experimentation" that FDR proclaimed — and which did so much to make the Depression Great.

In these historians' eyes, Coolidge was a do-nothing nonentity — and that verdict colored all the American history you have ever been taught in school.; 11:33 PM, March 19, 2013
perlhaqr said...: Where are you now that we need you, Silent Cal?

Plymouth Notch Cemetery
Plymouth, Windsor County, VT; 11:31 AM, March 20, 2013
Tony Muhlenkamp said...: Relevant speech by Amity Shlaes
http://www.hillsdale.edu/news/imprimis.asp; 3:00 PM, March 20, 2013
Ed said...: "There is no right to strike against the public safety by anybody, anywhere, any time." - Massachusetts Governor (later President) Calvin Coolidge on September 14, 1919, regarding the striking Boston Police Department where two-thirds (some say three-quarters) of the officers went on strike and were fired. President Ronald Reagan followed Coolidge's example with the 1981 PATCO strike.

http://townhall.com/columnists/calthomas/2011/02/22/coolidge-reagan-walker/page/full/; 5:57 PM, March 20, 2013
J.R.Shirley said...: Coolidge was da man, without a doubt. If only more of the current crop of carpet-baggers were like him.; 7:41 PM, March 20, 2013
Stretch said...: News report: Calvin Coolidge Dead
Will Rodgers: "How can they tell?"; 4:07 PM, March 21, 2013
Matt G said...: I've always had an affection for Harrison's administration, myself.; 6:28 AM, March 22, 2013