The title of this session is the progressive challenge of the early 1900s. Moderating this panel would be christopher timmis. Mr. Smith is a distinguished fellow at the hudson institute, but many know him from the American Enterprise institute, which he led as president from 1986 to 2008. Mr. Smiths career in washington began as a staff assistant to president richard nixon, working for Daniel P Moynihan during the reagan administration. Mr. Thomas was executive director of the president ial task force on regulatory relief. His he is a trustee of the Calvin Coolidge president ial fund. Please join me in welcoming mr. Dismukes and our panelists to the stage. He ideas and ideals. That guided coolidge. The president. The products not only of his no nonsense vermont upbringing studies at amherst and training in the law. They were also a result of his on the job experience as mayor of northampton. President of the Massachusetts Senate. And massachusetts Lieutenant Governor. And governor. During coolidges coming of age as a practicing politician. American politics, including his own Republican Party, were seized by a new impulse that called itself progressivism. The Progressive Movement championed many great causes and achieved some of them, including womens suffrage and a host of private, voluntary welfare initiatives. And institutions that included grace goodhue, coolidges lifelong project of the education of the deaf. But when it came to government progressive ism sought to cast aside traditional constitutional principles of separation of powers and limited government and to replace them with activist, headstrong and supposedly scientific government that would Reform Society from top to bottom and remake human nature itself. Progressive vision was a clever brand name. It appealed to americans innate commitment to progress that harkened back to our revolutionary founding. Even as it sought to repeal all the works of that founding, it appealed for a time to coolidge, and it plays a large role in american politics even today. At a 1924 press conference, then president coolidge, now a seasoned political pro and a confirmed and emphatic conservative, said this. Sometimes if a person is well thought of, he is called a progressive. As a matter of fact, all the Political Parties are progressive. I cant conceive of of a party existing for any length of time that wasnt progressive or of leadership being effective, that wasnt progressive. This was coolidge. His deadpan way of saying that the principles of the declaration and constitution and their continued application in the world of the 20th century and every claim to be on the side of progress in the customary all american sense of that word. This morning, we will hear from three accomplished historians and practitioners on the evolution of Calvin Coolidge. Is thought and practice at the time of rising progressive ism. Their biographies are in your program, but let me highlight the george nash is the author of several Founder National works on 20th century conservatism. Garland tucker is author of the high tide of american conservatism focusing on the president ial election of 1924 and christopher cox. During his seven terms as a member of the u. S. House of representatives was a budget hawk of could jettison dimensions. We will begin with george nash george. Thank you. In 1906, Calvin Coolidge was elected to a seat in the massachusetts house of representatives for all but one of the next 14 years. He held elective office, culminating in two terms as governor. Coolidges rise to prominence occurred during the progressive era, a time of militant reform movements and political ferment. That fractured the Republican Party. A time also of seething labor unrest and enormous immigration. In massachusetts, a heavily industrialized state with many factories. Pardon me. Nearly one third of the populace in 1910 was foreign born. How did coolidge, an undemonstrative yankee steer so successfully through these choppy political seas . Clearly, his probity, devotion to duty and unusual ability to win the trust of ordinary people across ethnic and party lines contributed greatly to his appeal at the polls. My right and my remarks today. I wish to identify two other factors. Both of them ideological. First. Coolidge survived during the progressive era because in many ways he was a progressive himself in 1907 and 1908, for example, state representative coolidge favored womens suffrage and direct election of u. S. Senators well before the constitu tional amendments were were enacted. Mindful no doubt of the considerable number of working class voters in his district. He supported legislation required wring one days rest in seven for workers and other bills intended to ease the burdens of working men. He vigorously endorsed an antimonopoly bill that would have provided prohibited business behemoths Like Standard Oil from selling their products below cost in an attempt to ruin their small competitors. A few years later, when a dangerous strike broke out among foreign born workers in the textile mills of lawrence, massachusetts, coolidge, now a state senator, was appointed chairman of a legislative committee on concealing action to bring the two sides together. After much effort, he and his colleagues resolved the dispute on terms that gave the strikers much of what they wanted and won coolidge plaudits for fair mindedness. He was no stand powder, a socialist opponent admitted. Indeed, coolidge, in his autobiography, declared that his record in the state Legislature Like legislature had been, and i quote his words, that of a liberal. And so it went as he climbed the ladder in massachusetts politics in 1919 as a new governor. He supported a landmark bill mandating that no woman or minor in massachusetts could be employed for more than 48 hours a week. Many manufacturing interests strenuously opposed him. He signed the bill anyway later that year and again in 1920, when he was still governor, he approved a host of other progressive legislative measures. This brings us to the second ideological ingredient in coolidges recipe for political success. In that era, his progressivism, though genuine and persistent, was tempered by his innate circumspection. And growing unease about progressive excess. In 1910, he remarked to his father that it is more important to kill bad bills than to pass good ones. A theme to which he returned in the years ahead in 1912. Although sensitive to the plight of the mill workers in lawrence, he disliked their radical leaders who advocated an overthrow of the capital system. They were socialists and anarchists, he complained privately, who were bent on destroying, and i quote coolidge again, destroy all authority, whether of any church or government. When Theodore Roosevelt bolted from the gop in 1912 and campaigned for president as the nominee of the new Progressive Party, coolidge always a steadfast republican, remained loyal to president taft. He was incensed when roosevelt endorsed in principle, the recall of judges by popular vote. To coolidge, speaking at a republican rally. This was nothing less than an assault on the independence of the judiciary. And it made the election of 1912, in his words, the most important since the civil war. He was happy when roosevelt was defeated. Coolidge was not pleased, however, by the drift of things in massachusetts. By early 1914, he was alarmed by what he later called a spirit of radicalism, rising in his state, a spirit manifested in bills in the legislature aimed, as he put it, at impairing the property of employers. In his inaugural address as president of the state senate in 1914, he forceful plea appealed to what he later described as the conservative spirit of the people. He titled his speech how faith in massachusetts. It was an eloquent case for a potentially conservative approach to government that was slowly becoming ascendant in his mind. Nevertheless, and we must not forget this coolidges support for Progressive Social welfare, religious elation did not cease in 1914. It continued as long as he held state office. A coolidge who announced as governor in january 19, 20 that it was now time to, in his words, conserve and retrench rather than to reform, was the same governor who in the ensuing months approved a slew of new progressive legislation. This brings me in closing to the fateful year, 1919, one of the most violent and strife ridden years in all of American History. The specter of bolshevik revolution abroad and a violent strikes and criminal anarchy at home. Greatly troubled governor coolidge. As the progressive tide receded and more radical assaults on the social order emerged. The experience of combating them shook him to the core of his being. And brought his fundamentally conservative beliefs in the rule of law. And ordered freedom to center stage. Without the harrowing upheavals of 1919 and the Boston Police strike that made him a national figure. Coolidge i think, would probably be remembered today as a cautious, progressive, an incrementalist, a practitioner of what has been called the politics of prudence for many years. Progressive and conservative beliefs coexisted in his mind. But when revolutionary challenges to the american system of government erupted after world war one, his rhetoric of conservatism became more conspicuous and assertive. It was this side of coolidge that defined him ever after beginning in 1920, when americans returned to normalcy and left the progressive era behind. Thank you. Doctor, and thank you very much. Garland tucker are if you please. Today we assume that parties, Political Parties stand for certain things. And those positions are permanent. For example, we assume that the democrats are the progressive cause and the republicans are the conservatives. But history isnt like that. Political impulse is make themselves felt. But as ill try to show you this morning, its almost a historical accident. Which Party Carries the banner for which impulse . And also that events and men have played a role in that. President mckinley played a role. Theodore roosevelt played a role. Calvin coolidge played a role in their personal fates when they lived and when they died. Also played a role. Our example is the Progressive Movement from the earliest days of the republic. Jeffersons philosophy, vision of limited government. Ed competed with hamiltons advocacy of a strong, more centralized government as the country developed into a more capitalist, industrialized and urban after the civil war. Some americans began to question whether the old jeffersonian ideals were sufficient. In the 1880s, american progressivism arose in response to what some viewed as the need for a strong government, a government to protect individuals from capitalism, not a hamiltonian government to promote capitalism as one historian has written, quote, progressivism began as a series of grassroots, angry, unorganized campaigns. Back consumers and taxpayers to challenge the legitimacy of privilege and concentrated wealth and power in, quote this movement was bipartisan. There were western republican farmers. There were southern democratic tenant farmers. And there were urban Industrial Workers and immigrants who were largely democrats. In 1896, just as coolidge was graduating from amherst, the Progressive Movement burst onto the National Scene at the Democratic National convention. Progressives, many from coolidge, his family party, the republicans, unleashed a single stinging backlash against the conservatism. President grover cleveland, the progressive populist from nebraska. William Jennings Bryan, stampeded the Democratic Convention and with his famous cross of gold speech. In fact, while it cool while at college, coolidge had actually debated gold, it was a big issue at that time. Brown articulated progressive impulse for citizens to band together, strengthen government, and confront big business. Capitalism was the problem, and government was the answer. William mckinley defended conservative ism, and as a republican twice defeated bryan. Mckinley was killed by an assassin making a near unknown the president and leader of coolidges party. Theodore roosevelt. When tr won on his own in 19 four, or coolidges party the gop had become ed become the Progressive Party. The election of 1912, when coolidge was running for state offices. Progressivism led by the gop had totally transformed the american political landscape, and the idea was still political play. Jeffersons success or roosevelts successor, William Howard taft had done, is utmost to uphold progressive policies. But by 1912, taft was seen as almost a quasi conservative of the democratic opponent. Woodrow wilson squarely positioned the democrats in the progressive camp. And the Third Party Candidate. In 1912, Theodore Roosevelt was running farther to the left on the bull moose progressive platform. Yet even further to the left was eugene debs, who campaigned as an outright socialist. As William Alan White has suggested, quote, never before have we been so nearly one people with one dominant political ideal, end quote. It was indeed. 1912 was indeed a hard time to progressivism with the taft, roosevelt split within the gop in 1912. Wilson gained the white house with only 42 of the vote, but claim the progressive mandate. As historian paul johnson has written about the progressive platform of 1912, quote, the state was seen as a knight in shining armor, coming to the rescue of the poor and the weak and the victimized, and doing with objective benevolence. What otherwise would be done . Selfish laid by greedy aggregators of private wealth in quote, coolidge watched all this. By 1910, coolidge himself was and William Allen whites words werent a more than half persuaded to be a roosevelt in progress of, end quote. And with his party in massachusetts law, coolidge signed off on and even led passage of progressive laws, antitrust laws against theaters, and passage of the amendments to the constitution. Coolidge gradually began to discern the of his own growing conservatism. With this new progress activism as he prepared to assume the presidency of the Massachusetts State Senate in 1913 and then Lieutenant Governor and governor. He considered it all and doubted the progress of impulse. This was the period that he wrote to his father that it is more important to kill a bad bill than to pass a good one. Coolidge later described this observation, quote, it appeared to me that a spirit of radicalism prevailed, which, unless checked, was likely to prove very distress, active in, quote a further define the spirit of radicalism as a dangerous notion that somehow the government should be blamed should be quote and this is this quote should be blamed because everybody else was not prosperous in, quote. Its interesting to note that Theodore Roosevelt was the widely acknowledged front runner for the gop nomination in 1920. But Theodore Roosevelt died unexpectedly in 1991, and he lived. Tr would probably have won the nomination and the election and the gop could conceive ably have become the Progressive Party at this happen. This would have put coolidge in a fix. He was, by the late 19 tens as a more serious conservative, and so was his party. In 1920, the gop made a decision. It would be the party of conservatism, even if it meant seeing a splinter move off and form another Progressive Party again. Normally see a policy of common sense would rule the selection of coolidge as Vice President ial candidate was in part a response to the demand or a conservative gop in the 1920 election. Why his president nominee coolidge was articulate. Is conservative fiction convey vision with clarity quote in a free republic, a great government is the product of a great people. They will look to themselves rather than to the government for success, as in, quote, he was rejecting progressivism. In 1919, tr died. Coolidge determined he would govern. In Paul Johnsons words, as, quote, the most internally consistent and single minded of u. S. President s. End quote. The 1920s, under hardings and coolidges leadership was a decade of conservative ascendancy. But the battle with progressivism continued in both parties. In the Democratic Party, the fight during the 1920s was exceed ingly acrimonious and culminated in the deadlocked convention. Of 1924, after 103 ballots that year. The exhausted democrat nominated a compromise conservative candidate john w davis. It was interesting to note that davis like coolidge, had begun his political career as a progressive. While progressivism was gaining wide acceptance, he had ably served under wilson. But like coolidge, davis grew increasingly conservative. By 1924, davis was as conservative as coolidge, which prompted the Third Party Candidate of robert la follette. La follette was a republican, and his running mate was a democrat. That was in the splintered party of the Progressive Party. An important aspect of coolidges legacy was the realignment of american Political Parties, which has continued now for 100 years. Coolidges landslide victory