Saturday, January 27, 2018

Why was Coolidge considered a good president?

Calvin Coolidge was the thirtieth president of the United States. He was well known as a man of few words, which even for a politician in his day was a remarkable accomplishment. Coolidge lived and promoted basic principles of thrift, modesty, and humility. He was quite a contrast to President Harding, who was representative of the time over which he was president, the Roaring Twenties. Calvin Coolidge rejected the rampant materialism and the rejection of religious values. His primary goal was to restore the confidence, dignity, and respect for the office of the president, which were tarnished by the scandals of the Harding administration.
When evaluating presidents, several factors must be taken into consideration. Factors such as the circumstances they assumed the office, world events, national crises, and visionary leadership are a few. Ultimately if a president is good or bad is a matter of opinion and therefore is subjective. Polls of political scientists rank Coolidge twenty-eighth with Lincoln, Washington, and Franklin D. Roosevelt as the top three (American Political Science Association, 2019). Coolidge ranks twenty-seventh by the Presidential Historians Association survey in 2017. Other reviews of presidential scholars, historians, and political scientists have similar opinions of Coolidge. If you rank Coolidge by performance in the Stock Market, Coolidge ranks very high. Coolidge presided in an era of unprecedented economic growth. However, that ended quickly with the stock market crash.
In general, he is considered by most academics to be mediocre. Coolidge did have a favorable opinion as pro-business and as a conservative in dealing with issues of the federal budget. It is fair to say Coolidge represented an approach that many Americans were questioning during the economic boom of the twenties. From the perspective of the economy, staying out of foreign wars and managing the federal government, it is probably fair to say Coolidge was a good manager and an adequate president. Historians and political scientists tend to rank presidents on their domestic agenda and approach to issues such as income equality, civil rights, environment, and expansion of government. If a person uses this approach, then Coolidge was not considered a good president.
https://www.businessinsider.com/greatest-us-presidents-ranked-by-political-scientists-2018-2

https://www.kiplinger.com/slideshow/investing/T038-S001-the-best-and-worst-presidents-stock-market/index.html

https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/calvin-coolidge/

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