Calvin Coolidge- The Man

Political Career-Mayor of Northampton,

MassachusettsLieutenant Governor of

MassachusettsGovernor of MassachusettsVice President of the U.S.

Calvin Coolidge- The Man

Characteristics-PlainThriftyQuiet (aka- “Silent Cal”)Pro-Business (Less Government Interference)Follower of Jefferson’s belief that the

government is best which governs the least

Presidential Election of 1924

Republican National Convention- 1924Cleveland, OhioNominated Calvin Coolidge and

Charles Dawes as his running mate

Presidential Election of 1924

Democratic National Convention- 1924Madison Square Garden, New York

CityNominated John W. Davis and

Charles W. Bryan as his running mate

Presidential Election of 1924

Republicans and Democrats both experienced a split within their partiesCity Dwellers vs. Country Dwellers

Progressive Ticket, 1924

Robert “Battling Bob” La FolletteBelieved that they had turned their

backs on the farmers of AmericaRan for the presidency on the new

Progressive ticketRepublicans and Democrats attacked

him as a radical

Presidential Election of 1924

Calvin Coolidge won the election

Surprising Outcome- 123 women won seats in state legislatures2 women were elected governors of their

states Miriam “Ma” Ferguson (Texas) Nellie Ross (Wyoming)

Government Helps Business

Coolidge believed- Free Enterprise = Freedom of business from

government rules Government regulations = Less profitable

business Profitable businesses = A happy and prosperous

nation Factories = Temples Workers = Worshippers

Government Helps Business

Federal Trade Commission and Federal Reserve Board take on new rolesAided the companies they were

supposed to be regulatingAllowed for the development of

trusts and monopolies again

Supreme Court Aids Big Business Example- US Steel was ruled as

not a monopoly even though it controlled 40% of the steel industry in 1920

The Farm Problem

Farmers were growing poorer while the urban dwellers were getting richerProblem with supply and demand

More produce meant lower prices and less profits

High cost of farmingHigher taxes

Government responds with protectionist tariffs- which didn’t work

McNary-Haugen Bill

Federal government would buy up the agricultural surplus Hold it until the home market improved orSell it abroad

Failed to pass Congress in 1924 and 1926 Passed Congress in 1927 and 1928

Vetoed by Coolidge both times

Presidential Election of 1928

Republicans- Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover Big Business Small Town/Rural

America Protestantism Prohibition Humanitarian record

during the war made him popular

Democrats- New York Governor Alfred E. Smith Big City Politics Roman Catholicism Anti-Prohibition Faced staunch

opposition in the South and Midwest from the KKK

Presidential Election of 1928

Hoover won a close election Democrats saw a positive in that they

made headway into the twelve largest cities in AmericaA new trend that will affect future elections