Why is calvin coolidge important

His grounding in politics, legislating, and public administration was thorough. He started at the bottom of the political ladder and worked his way to the top. He held both legislative and administrative positions—excelling at both, a rare combination in a politician. In his 23 years in elective office, the following are the eight positions he held by gift of the people, along with his dates of service.

In his political thinking, Coolidge was at heart a conservative. This is seen in his focus on preserving individual liberty and freedom, his defense of property rights, his support of religion, his encouragement of tolerance by personal example in a time of intolerance, and his Burkean respect for the law and the time-honored institutions and customs of society.

When it came to new legislation, he was concerned that it not only be constitutional but also met a genuine need in a practical fashion. He was never quick to legislate. He was, in fact, more concerned with stopping bad legislation than passing good. Yet he was not afraid to use the powers of government, when necessary, to address exceptional public needs, as demonstrated during the Great Mississippi Flood of , when government agencies and the Red Cross combined efforts to meet the crisis.

Coolidge was attuned to the public mood, and he did support progressive or liberal measures during his days in Massachusetts politics. Indeed, early on, he was considered a liberal. He was sympathetic to the causes of woman and labor and worked on their behalf. It must be understood that Coolidge was proud of Massachusetts—then an example to the nation of an enlightened, progressive state—and what it had accomplished for the well being of its citizens through its institutions, public and private.

It was while governor of the Commonwealth that Coolidge faced the greatest challenge of his political career: the Boston Police Strike of , one of those sad, tragic happenings that should never have been. Here he was faced with a challenge that could either make him politically or destroy his career. Senate, Senator Charles S. As a consequence of the police strike, Coolidge reaped praise and gained a national fame that would propel him to the top of the political ladder.

This simple event captured then as it still captures today the imagination of a nation. With his belief in local and state government as the true engine of democracy, Coolidge necessarily held a narrow Jeffersonian view regarding the functions of the national government.

Indeed, his views on the subject were much more in keeping with those of Grover Cleveland, the president of his youth, than with those of Theodore Roosevelt or Woodrow Wilson. He often spoke of the essential, basic role of state and local governments in our political system.

His primary concern was on reducing the deficit, cutting taxes, maintaining tariff stability, and making the government run efficiently and effectively In these tasks, he excelled. Truly, Calvin Coolidge was the right man, at the place, at the right time. It should be noted that the passage of the Revenue Act of , which embodied his tax policies, was the culmination of his presidency.

It helped him to block or lessen raids on the Treasury, such as those attempted by Congress in connection with Mississippi River improvements. To improve his effectiveness over the air, he brought in an expert to work with him on his radio presence.

Coolidge, of course, did not neglect the print media , it being a great source of free publicity. As president, he went out of his way to accommodate the needs of the White House press corps. For instance, he provided them with stories on slow news days and, most notably, he became the first president to hold regular, twice-weekly press conferences. He also willingly satisfied the demands of camera and newsreel men, who had only recently gained access to the White House.

All he asked of them was not to take his picture while he was savoring one of his favorite cigars. It is worth noting that during the campaign, he became the first president to appear in a talking newsreel. Lee de Forest produced the film in which Coolidge read excerpts from his speech accepting the Republican presidential nomination. Coolidge was no isolationist. The Revolution made us a nation; the Spanish[-American] War made us a world power; the present war has given us recognition as a world power.

We shall not again be considered provincial. Whether we desired it or not this position has come to us with its duties and its responsibilities. On the international front , the Coolidge administration supported the Dawes plan for German reparations and established accommodative payment schedules for the Allied war debt to the United States. This, along with American private loans and governmental support, gradually led the major nations of the world to restore the international gold standards, thereby spurring world trade.

The administration also secured the ratification of the Kellogg-Briand Treaty outlawing war. It failed, however, because of the opposition of isolationists Senators, to secure U. Also, its efforts to build upon the success of the Washington Conference on the Limitation of Armaments, , were unproductive. Notably, the administration through the good work of Ambassador Dwight W. Morrow did succeed in restoring our strained relations with Mexico at a time when some were pressing for intervention in that unhappy country.

As President, Coolidge did venture outside of the United States on one occasion. It was revived again during the Great War at the time he was serving in state government.

Indeed, his first act as governor was to approve funding for a welcoming celebration for the men of Yankee Division. As president, Coolidge sought to maintain a modest military force one sufficient to meet peacetime needs. Eventually, at the direct order of President Coolidge, Mitchell was court-martialed for insubordination.

Having been found guilty, he resigned from the Army. Coolidge was the last president never to have flown in an airplane, yet he well understood the value of aviation and supported its development. The greatest public moment of Coolidge presidency, as well as the high water mark of the s, was the welcoming home ceremony at Washington for Charles Augustus Lindbergh on June 11, Louis from New York to Paris in which the young, brave pilot had triumphed over Death.

Thanks to radio, Americans in the cities and towns and on the farm were able to participate in this wonderful, national celebration. With the backing of the Coolidge Administration, Lindbergh, who the President raised to rank of colonel, went on to tour the nation to build public support for aviation. Lindbergh and Coolidge developed a lasting relationship.

Military training was encouraged. He understood, moreover, that the great strength of the country rested ultimately not on its implements of war, but on its people, its agriculture and industrial resources, and its wealth.

This led him to focus primarily on issues relating to the mobilization of manpower and industry. In this matter, he called for advice upon Bernard M. Marines land in Nicaragua to quiet a revolt. America military forces will maintain a presence in Nicaragua until The Air Commerce Act is passed by Congress. While the federal government already subsidized airmail, this act gave the Commerce Department regulatory powers over sectors of the aviation industry, such as the licensing of pilots and aircrafts.

A naval ammunition depot at Lake Denmark, New Jersey, explodes after it is struck by lightning. The Supreme Court rules that the President has the right to remove cabinet members at his own discretion. The ruling nullifies the Tenure of Office Act, which required consent of the Senate in order to restrict the powers of President Andrew Johnson during Reconstruction.

Congress creates the Federal Radio Commission to regulate this burgeoning field of national and international communication. In doing so, lawmakers continue the trend of imposing increasing federal regulation on private sectors of the economy. The Supreme Court rules that a Texas law prohibiting black people from voting in Democratic primaries is unconstitutional. Charles A. Lindbergh completes the first transatlantic flight, traversing the distance from New York to Paris in his monoplane, the Spirit of St.

Louis , in less than thirty-four hours. A year later, Amelia Earhart will become the first woman to make the flight.

Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti are executed in Massachusetts for their alleged murder of a factory guard, despite protests that the two men had been unfairly prosecuted for their radical beliefs. Soon after, however, the government revokes all rights to oil-rich territories, generating fierce protest by American businessmen.

The United States recognizes new president Alvaro Obregon on the condition that he grant American firms subsoil rights. Under such pressure, the Mexican Supreme Court rules the law unconstitutional, returning all rights back to American companies. The Democratic Party nominates Alfred E. Smith for President and Joseph T. Robinson for vice president. A Catholic, Smith will have his loyalty questioned during the campaign as religious prejudice plays a key role in the election. Richard E.

Byrd begins the first leg of his flight to the South Pole in Antarctica. Reaching the pole in November, Byrd explores and studies the continent for the next twenty years. Named for its two principal authors, Secretary of State Frank B. Kellogg and French foreign minister Aristide Briand, the pact outlaws war as a means to settle disputes, substituting diplomacy and world opinion for armed conflict. Ultimately signed by 62 nations, the pact is more symbolic than practical, though Kellogg would win the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts the following year.

Hoover wins the presidential election in an apparent landslide, electoral votes to Smith's In fact, the popular vote shows a much closer race, with 21,, for Hoover and 15,, for Smith. Grant Rutherford B. Hayes James A. Garfield Chester A. Roosevelt Harry S. Truman Dwight D. Eisenhower John F. Kennedy Lyndon B. Bush Bill Clinton George W. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! Subscribe for fascinating stories connecting the past to the present.

Grace Coolidge was an American first lady and the wife of Calvin Coolidge, the 30th president of the United States. A former teacher at a Massachusetts school for the deaf, she used her platform as first lady to champion education and child welfare issues. The 29th U. Woodrow Wilson , the 28th U. Remembered as an advocate for democracy, progressivism and world peace, Wilson left a complex legacy that included re-segregating many George W. Bush, the 41st U. A graduate of Yale University and Harvard John Quincy Adams began his diplomatic career as the U.

After serving in the Massachusetts State Senate and the U. Grover Cleveland , who served as the 22nd and 24th U. He is the only president to date who served two nonconsecutive terms, and also the only Democratic president to win election during the period of Republican Richard Nixon , the 37th U. Nixon stepped down in , halfway through his second term, rather than face impeachment over his efforts to cover up illegal activities by members of his His tenure, from March 4, , to April 4, , is the shortest of any U.

Harrison, who was born into a prominent Virginia family, joined the Live TV. This Day In History. History Vault. Calvin Coolidge: Impact and Legacy. Breadcrumb U. Calvin Coolidge Essays Life in Brief.

Lie Before the Presidency. Campaigns and Elections. Domestic Affairs. Foreign Affairs. Life After the Presidency.