Belated Happy Birthday Silent Cal
For a President, having your birthday on the 4th of July must be like a kid having a birthday on Christmas. John Calvin Coolidge Jr., the 30th President of the United States, was born on July 4, 1872 (139 years and one day ago) in Plymouth Notch, Vermont, the only President to be born on the 4th of July.
Coolidge worked his way up the political ladder in Massachusetts politics, serving as a City Solicitor of Northampton, State Representative, Mayor of Northampton, State Senator, Lieutenant-Governor. finally becoming the Governor of Massachusetts in 1918. His actions during the Boston Police Strike of 1919 garnered national attention and in 1920 Coolidge was selected to run on the national ticket for the GOP as the Vice-Presidential nominee alongside candidate Warren G. Harding. He was elected as the 29th Vice President in 1920 and became President following the sudden death of Warren G. Harding in 1923. Coolidge was elected to the Presidency in his own right in 1924.
What I like most about Coolidge is his record in the field of civil rights, especially his respect for Native Americans. Coolidge gained a reputation as being a man of few words and was therefore earned the nickname "Silent Cal." According to one story which may or may not be true, Dorothy Parker sat next to Coolidge at a dinner and said to him, "Mr. Coolidge, I've made a bet against a fellow who said it was impossible to get more than two words out of you." According to the story, Coolidge replied "You lose." Dorothy Parker is also supposed to have said, upon learning that Coolidge had died, "How can they tell?" Coolidge often seemed uncomfortable among fashionable Washington society. When a reported asked him why he continued to attend so many of the dinner parties, he replied, "Got to eat somewhere."
Coolidge gained a reputation as a small-government conservative who restored public confidence in the White House after the scandals of his predecessor's administration. He left office with considerable popularity. His reputation underwent a renaissance during the Reagan Administration. To anyone desiring a light and enjoyable read that gives the reader the flavour of the man, I highly recommend the Autobiography of Calvin Coolidge.
Coolidge worked his way up the political ladder in Massachusetts politics, serving as a City Solicitor of Northampton, State Representative, Mayor of Northampton, State Senator, Lieutenant-Governor. finally becoming the Governor of Massachusetts in 1918. His actions during the Boston Police Strike of 1919 garnered national attention and in 1920 Coolidge was selected to run on the national ticket for the GOP as the Vice-Presidential nominee alongside candidate Warren G. Harding. He was elected as the 29th Vice President in 1920 and became President following the sudden death of Warren G. Harding in 1923. Coolidge was elected to the Presidency in his own right in 1924.
What I like most about Coolidge is his record in the field of civil rights, especially his respect for Native Americans. Coolidge gained a reputation as being a man of few words and was therefore earned the nickname "Silent Cal." According to one story which may or may not be true, Dorothy Parker sat next to Coolidge at a dinner and said to him, "Mr. Coolidge, I've made a bet against a fellow who said it was impossible to get more than two words out of you." According to the story, Coolidge replied "You lose." Dorothy Parker is also supposed to have said, upon learning that Coolidge had died, "How can they tell?" Coolidge often seemed uncomfortable among fashionable Washington society. When a reported asked him why he continued to attend so many of the dinner parties, he replied, "Got to eat somewhere."
Coolidge gained a reputation as a small-government conservative who restored public confidence in the White House after the scandals of his predecessor's administration. He left office with considerable popularity. His reputation underwent a renaissance during the Reagan Administration. To anyone desiring a light and enjoyable read that gives the reader the flavour of the man, I highly recommend the Autobiography of Calvin Coolidge.