Posted on 03/15/2011 9:20:12 AM PDT by statestreet
Presidential scholar David Pietrusza reflects on the legacy of the 30th president at a symposium hosted by the Calvin Coolidge Memorial Foundation. Mr. Pietrusza considers the influences that shaped President Coolidge’s political philosophy and why “Silent Cal” never wasted or minced words.
bump for later
When he was President one summer he spent a month fishing in Northern Wisconsin. The nearest phone was 20 miles a way in a High School.
What a different world that was.
Interesting you mentioned that. My late Dad and Grandfather were from Amberg, WI and they once pointed out to me the old gas station where President Coolidge refueled his automobile while on that trip.
"If the power of laying imposts will not be sufficient, some other specific mode of raising a revenue should have been assigned the general government; many may be suggested in which their power may be accurately defined and limited, and it would be much better to give them authority to lay and collect a duty on exports, not to exceed a certain rate per cent, than to have surrendered every kind of resource that the country has, to the complete abolition of the state governments, and which will introduce such an infinite number of laws and ordinances, fines and penalties, courts, and judges, collectors, and excisemen, that when a man can number them, he may enumerate the stars of Heaven. "BRUTUS
What a better world that was as evidenced by Calvin Coolidge's stand on immigration:
"American institutions rest solely on good citizenship. They were created by people who had a background of self-government. New arrivals should be limited to our capacity to absorb them into the ranks of good citizenship. America must be kept American. For this purpose it is necessary to continue a policy of restricted immigration. It would be well to make such immigration of a selective nature with some inspection at the source, and based either on a prior census or upon the record of naturalization. Either method would insure the admission of those with the largest capacity and best intention of becoming citizens. Those who do not want to be partakers of the American spirit ought not to settle in America.”
The FreeRepublic thread on that topic from June 2007 is worthy of a re-read.
Plus, he broke a police strike and laid off the strikers because he felt that police shouldnt be able to strike, because they are the legal enforcement in the city.
I had to look up Amberg. Didn’t know he went over there too.
I was talking about his trips to Brule Wisconsin up by Superior.
There’s a funny story about Coolidge (as I recall reading): he was at some White House dinner party. Gal #1 bet Gal #2 that Coolidge would not say three words. Gal #2 went up to Cal and told him about the bet, hoping he’d help her win. “You lose,” said the President.
I remember in the late 60s when, as a student at the UW, I used to walk up to the State Capital Building on nice days and just take self-guided tours of the building. Occasionally, I would see Governer Lee Sherman Drefus taking his afternoon walk around the square and he was always willing to stop and chat.
It was a better time, before the insanity of the May 1970 riots.
I am getting old and the memory ain't what it was! lol
I had assumed he took a train to Superior. He drove? from Chicago?
I sure don’t know. Probably he took the train to Green Bay and then drove.
No disrespect intended to your dad and granddad but, do you think they could have been having a little fun with you? Seems like an awfully strange way to get to Superior.
My Granddad and Dad had a lot of fun with me, but some things were just not done. They were pretty proud of the fact that the President of the United States stopped in their little town of Amberg.
Huh, look what I found. A Time Magazine article from that time (doesn’t tell how he got to Brule but interesting anyway)
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,881015,00.html
Mandell House, Father of the Federal Reserve, practically lived in the White House and influenced everything Coolidge did.
I finally got around to reading "Cadillac Desert" and reminded myself once again what a disaster government projects are in general, and the TVA in particular.
Neat! Thanks!
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