americana-plus: On this day, January 5, in 1933, President Calvin Coolidge, 30th President of the Un
americana-plus: On this day, January 5, in 1933, President Calvin Coolidge, 30th President of the United States passed away. Coolidge gained a reputation as a small-government conservative and also as a man who said very little and had a dry sense of humor, receiving the nickname “Silent Cal”. One anecdote about Coolidge is based on exactly this point.“I have made a bet, Mr. Coolidge, that I could get more than two words out of you,” one lady apparently remarked to Silent Cal at a dinner one evening. His response? “You lose.” He chose not to run again in the 1928 election, remarking that ten years as president was (at the time) “longer than any other man has had it—too long!” Throughout his gubernatorial career, Coolidge ran on the record of fiscal conservatism and strong support for women’s suffrage, and a opposition to Prohibition. During his presidency, he restored public confidence in the White House after the many scandals of his predecessor’s administration. Coolidge made a huge impact on the country during his time in office. He lowered the national debt from $22.3 billion to $16.9 billion. He accomplished this feat while cutting the top tax rate in half. As a result, the federal budget had a surplus and unemployment remained low. The economy thrived. He signed into law the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924, which granted US citizenship to American Indians of the United States, and oversaw a period of rapid and expansive economic growth in the country, known as the “Roaring Twenties”, leaving office with considerable popularity. He was known for his hands-off approach to governing and for his pro-business stances. As a Coolidge biographer wrote: “He embodied the spirit and hopes of the middle class, could interpret their longings and express their opinions. That he did represent the genius of the average is the most convincing proof of his strength.” Calvin Coolidge was truly one of our greatest Presidents. -- source link