Posted on 07/14/2012 8:02:34 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
The American public may be about to do something it has not done in 88 years: elect a former governor of Massachusetts as president of the United States. In anticipation of this election, we can only hope that some of Governor Romney's advisors will introduce him to his predecessor, Governor Calvin Coolidge.
Coolidge was one of the most popular presidents in U.S. history, but historians have tended to underestimate his importance. However, with the advent of Reagan and the revival of conservatism, Coolidge's place in history has been re-appraised.
Historian Paul Johnson has called Coolidge "[t]he most internally consistent and single minded of modern American presidents." Amity Shlaes has written recently that Coolidge believed his first obligation was "to do no harm. His no harm rule came out of strength of character. By holding back, Coolidge believed he sustained stability, so that citizens knew what to expect from their government."
Perhaps one of Coolidge's own supporters best summarized his record: "Coolidge never wasted any time, never wasted any words, and never wasted any public money." Before meeting his predecessor, Romney might well consider the following Coolidge administration accomplishments:
Top marginal income tax rates were lowered from 73% to 24%.
By the end of his term, 98% of the population paid no income tax at all.
The federal budget was reduced by 35%.
Per capita income increased over 30%.
Unemployment averaged 3.3%.
GNP grew at the fastest compound rate of any eight-year period in U.S. history.
There are some very important lessons that Mitt could learn from Silent Cal. First and foremost, Coolidge was a man of character who embodied the classic New England virtues upon which the Republic was founded: hard work, independent thinking ("common sense" as he called it), lack of pretense, sense of duty, perseverance, scrupulous honesty
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
I think I could vote FOR that guy. Make it so.
He was a conservative of course they down play him. And they worship the socialist/communist FDR.
If you read “The Forgotten Man” Silent Cal was more laissez faire, while the current occupant is lazy fare.
Silent Cal was also Reagan favorite president.
Well, even the GOP could not see its way to elect Cal the first time. He had to get in the hard way.
Coolidge was one of my favorites.
Unfortunately, Mitt's DNA prevents him from being like Coolidge. Mitt's instinct is to grow the State.
Coolidge was great, and of the reasons is because he opposed unending mass immigration. He signed into law the restrictive immigration laws that would last until last until the disastrous 1965 reform (which only passed behind a series of either false promises or outright lies from the bill’s supporters). This might also explain why Coolidge has been dismissed and overlooked, even by conservatives.
So of the many ways Romney could learn from Coolidge, immigration is one of the most important. Romney has actually called for increasing legal immigration. This is of course insane unless one supports hastening the demographic destruction of the GOP/conservative movement. I don’t know if it’s his business mindset, or just another example of the sad, pathetic, and futile attempts by Republicans to avoid being called names by softening their opposition to illegal immigration with mindless cheerleading for legal immigration. Either way, I hope Romney thinks otherwise once in the Oval Office.
Coolidge saw after decades of mass immigration that it was time for a big reduction. It’s too bad that Romney and other Republicans can’t see we are in the same position today. Demographics is destiny.
Silent Cal is my favorite President. Even more so than Reagan.
Harding and Coolidge actually reduced the national debt during their 8 years in office.
On 30 June 1921 the national debt was 23,977,450,552.54
On 30 June 1929 the national debt was 16,931,088,484.10
It always befuddle me that people think that a mid 60’s year old of the Establishment wing all of his political life will heed to advice or do what others wish and desires that he do. Romney is who he is and just looking at his advisors that he hire will tell you that he by no means will change his ways or stripes and so it’s futile to suggest otherwise
Yeah, Harding gets overlooked too. In fact he was also good on immigration, signing a restrictive law in 1921.
It’s too bad Reagan and the Bushes were so bad on immigration.
Coolidge Was once mayor of Northampton Massachusetts, a town so blue it makes Berkeley CA look like Crawford TX
Indeed anther Calvin Coolidge mitt would be awesome.
“It always befuddle me that people think that a mid 60’s year old of the Establishment wing all of his political life will heed to advice or do what others wish and desires that he do. Romney is who he is and just looking at his advisors that he hire will tell you that he by no means will change his ways or stripes and so it’s futile to suggest otherwise”
Your probably right, but what choice do we have? I have long accepted that Washington will not willingly give up power period. This is why we must go the State resistance & nullification rout. While we cannot get our federal politicians to give up power.(their greed & corruption runs to deep). It is a very different thing to get our state politicians to attack and TAKE power from Washington.
There at least we are working with the grain of political nature, and from there we and check them with interstate voting/competition for the productive individuals.
Reagan also shafted us all on the Gun Control Act of 1986. That and amnesty were his two big screwups, IMO. That’s why I worry a little about the cult of Reagan so prevalent in the GOP. Yes, overall he was great, but he really shafted us a couple of times, so even Reagan leaves room for improvement.
"My fundamental idea of both private and public business came first from my father. He had the strong New England trait of great repugnance at seeing anything wasted. He was a generous and charitable man, but he regarded waste as a moral wrong."
"Wealth comes from industry and from the hard experience of human toil. To dissipate it in waste and extravagance is disloyalty to- humanity. This is by no means a doctrine of parsimony. Both men and nations should live in accordance with their means and devote their substance not only to productive industry, but to the creation of the various forms of beauty and the pursuit of culture which give adornments to the art of life."
I’d say his biggest mistake is between the Amnesty (though I do tend to believe him that he thought enforcement efforts would be real) and wasting a Sup Court pick on Sandra Day O’Connor. The GOP had control of the senate when he picked O’Connor, so there is every reason to believe he would have gotten a good judge approved had he not got caught up in the liberal idea of making history by putting the first woman on the Sup Court.
Anthony Kennedy was also a mistake, but at least then he didn’t have the Senate.
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