A Lesson from President Calvin Coolidge

In today’s world, fraught with conflict and marked by deep national division, what we need most is strong leadership that unifies people across all backgrounds, instills hope, and leads by example. While no presidency is perfect, the two terms led by Calvin Coolidge played a major role in bringing our nation out of the post-first world war slump and into a period of economic and social revitalization.

After reading The Autobiography of Calvin Coolidge, I began to understand that his legacy stemmed from his sense of responsibility to the nation, his commitment to preserving the merit and accountability of the presidential office, and his trust in the American people. Of course, other factors may have contributed to the country’s postwar rebuilding such as fierce nationalism and an emerging consumerist culture. But Coolidge’s core values of merit, trust, hard work, integrity, and community undoubtedly shaped the national ethos.

One striking example was his response to the devastating Mississippi and Vermont floods in 1927. Coolidge laid his trust in the people, seeing the risk of overextending his federal power. Indeed, residents of Vermont and Mississippi raised millions of dollars through charity and effectively rebuilt their communities. This demonstrated that empowerment and trust could unite communities more effectively than centralized control.

America is unique in that we are a melting pot of so many different nationalities. While we all identify as American, many of us carry an underlying loyalty to some country – a loyalty that often lies dormant until foreign conflicts involving those nations arise. Today, with multiple international crises unfolding simultaneously, these quiet loyalties can exacerbate our existing political divisions. In such a climate, I have no doubt that it would only help us to have neutral, unifying figurehead, rather than a polarizing one. An emboldened person of power who disregards the refinements and responsibilities of presidency only sets a poor example to the people. Americans are known for being outspoken, but the past few years have seen norms spurned, precedents broken, and many records broken.

However, this is not all to say that we are in a horribly dark time. Credit must be given where credit is due.

If Calvin Coolidge’s presidency teaches us anything, it is the importance of middle ground. The president holds a responsibility not only to govern but also to soothe internal conflicts and inspire the nation to rise to the occasion.