Historian and Presidential Scholar Amity Shlaes Speaks on Calvin Coolidge
Shlaes explained how serious of an endeavor economics was to Coolidge, saying, "He took economics the way other presidents took war."
On February 25, Presidential Scholar Amity Shlaes spoke to the students and faculty of The King’s College about Calvin Coolidge, the “forgotten president.” In her talk, intriguingly titled “Better than Reagan? Calvin Coolidge, the Forgotten President, and What He Offers for Today,” Shlaes described the life of a man with whom most people are unfamiliar, despite his stature as the thirtieth President of the United States.
President Greg Thornbury introduced Ms. Shlaes, who has written four New York Times bestsellers and also chairs the board of the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation. Shlaes joined The King’s College as Presidential Scholar in October 2014, and she is currently teaching an economics class at King’s on the Great Depression.
In her talk, Shlaes explained that the urge for the government to spend is not a partisan phenomenon, but rather a bipartisan impulse. This, she posited, was why Coolidge might have been a better president than Ronald Reagan. Said Shlaes, “Even Ronald Reagan did not spend less in office than his predecessors.” In contrast, Coolidge, who served as president from 1923-1929, actually left the Federal budget lower than when he came in, cutting the top marginal tax rate to 25% (where Reagan only cut it to 28%).
Coolidge originally came into office as Harding’s vice president, and they ran on a platform of “saying no.” Harding stressed the concept of normalcy, maintaining that the economic environment should be normal so that people could start companies. Coolidge, disapproving of the name, called this same concept “reducing economic uncertainty.” When the pair won the election, they actuallydid say no in their administration. “They did no harm, like a doctor,” said Shlaes. Unfortunately, Harding became lazy in his presidency, appointing his friends to positions and throwing lavish parties. His untimely death in 1923 meant that Coolidge, as his vice president, became president by default.
When Coolidge took over after Harding’s death, most people assumed that he was a lame duck. However, he recognized the mistakes that Harding had made and, as Shlaes said, “Where Harding was divided, Coolidge was united.” He understood the importance of living out his mission every day—Shlaes illustrated this by telling the story of two lion cubs that Coolidge was given, whom he named “Budget Bureau” and “Tax Reduction.” He then made sure that the two lions stayed the same size. “People could see that he was determined to do everything to perfection,” said Shlaes.
Shlaes explained how serious of an endeavor economics was to Coolidge, saying, “He took economics the way other presidents took war.” During his administration, Coolidge became notorious for killing laws (he vetoed 50 bills during his time in office). Money flowed in from the tax cuts Coolidge made, and people began to see his value. They realized, Shlaes said, that “temperament matters.”
As Shlaes closed her talk, she emphasized that Coolidge was a man of deep faith who wanted to remove government from those things that ought to be governed by the Spirit. “He believed there were some things government just couldn’t do for you,” she said.
Shlaes followed her talk with a brief Q & A, during which she answered questions about the widely different scenarios in which Coolidge and Reagan served, food stamp and farming legislation that Coolidge vetoed, and what might have happened had Coolidge served a second term (her verdict: it probably would not have been a good period for him, due to the stock market).
The event took place in the City Room on the fifth floor of The King’s College, and many students, faculty, and staff members came to hear Shlaes’s address.