Calvin Coolidge was the 30th president of the United States of America. He first took office when he was vice president for Warren G. Harding who had a heart attack on August 2, 1923. Coolidge was known for his quiet demeanor and nature, which was complete the opposite of his predecessor, Harding. Alfred E. Smith stated that Coolidge was “distinguished for character more than for heroic achievement” (The White House).
Calvin Coolidge had many political experiences before assuming the role of presidency. He attended and graduated from Amherst College, majoring in law. He spent 20 years practicing law in Massachusetts in a law office. Coolidge started his political career on City Counsel in Northampton, Massachusetts. …show more content…
Coolidge used his previous political experience, combined with his quiet demeanor and personality, to help build back up the office of presidency to a respectable state. He made his first political speech to Congress on the radio in December of 1923 (History). The first major act that he signed while acting president was the Immigration Act that limited immigration. He wanted to limit misuse of Federal Aid money for agriculture and other industries. During this brief time, Coolidge became very popular among the American population. This paved the road for Coolidge to gain the nomination for president during the 1924 election …show more content…
He often hosted parties at the White House to try to build relationships to both Democrats and Republicans. He was an honest man who tried to listen to those members of Congress who came to him with problems or suggestions. Initially, Coolidge had to rely on the Republican Party because they were in power of Congress until 1926. For the next several years, the Democratic Party would be in control of Congress. He was intent on making friends with Congress, however many Democrats and Independents were unable to forget the scandals that Harding had created before he passed away. Coolidge’s main issue was he was unable to get Congress to bend on matters that were important to him. Government was wanting to spend money, where Coolidge was wanting to make cuts to federal spending. The Coolidge-Melon plan seemed to help put money not used for taxes from the wealthy back into the U.S. economy by giving them a tax break. One bill that created an issue between Coolidge and Congress was the McNary-Haugen bill that created “legislation, flood control, and public power development” (Profiles of U.S.). Coolidge vetoed this bill twice. In the end, Coolidge was correct and the bill did not help the agricultural issues that America was having (Profiles of