The circumstances that allowed Calvin Coolidge’s political survival and the smooth sailing of the entire GOP are worth revisiting today as a scandal-plagued Republican president looks to win a second term during relatively prosperous times
Jared Cohen is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Jigsaw at Alphabet Inc. He is also an adjunct senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.
into his term before Coolidge suspected that trouble was brewing. It took just three months from the time of Harding’s funeral for the scandals to break. The first to explode was the Veterans’ Bureau, which during Harding’s time had wielded an enormous amount of influence with a $500 million budget and 30,000 jobs to dish out. Its previous secretary, Charles Forbes, had been involved in a lucrative kickback scheme in which he pillaged his own department to spruce up his ranch.
Harding’s interior secretary, Albert Fall, had his own plan and had persuaded Harding to transfer authority over the reserves to his department. Rather than receive competing bids for the leases of the reserves, he would sole-source the leases under a national security justification. He would then lease the three reserves to three separate friends with terms that were disproportionately favorable to the oil companies.
Daugherty also ran the Justice Department as a ruthless tyrant and drew the ire of many enemies. As attorney general, he obstructed justice, most notably during the Teapot Dome investigations. When, on February 20, 1924, Montana Senator Burton Wheeler introduced a resolution specifically calling for an investigation of the attorney general, Daugherty responded—or at least the FBI chief did on his behalf—by harassing him both publicly and privately.
Coolidge didn’t have to lift a finger to win the 1924 presidential election with the second-largest popular vote in Republican history. It was fortunate, too, as the unexpected death of his son left him too emotionally distraught to campaign. But as William Allen White observed: “In a fat and happy world, Coolidge is the man of the hour. Why tempt fate by opposing him.
Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Whistleblower behind latest White House scandal immediately goes back to work for TrumpTricia Newbold, the Trump administration’s latest whistleblower, did something unexpected only hours after a House committee released her deposition that the White House had overruled career staff members who denied security clearances: she went back to work.“As you can imagine,” Ms Newbold, 39, an employee
Read more »
President Trump won’t attend ‘boring,’ ‘negative’ White House correspondents’ dinnerPresident Trump won’t attend 'boring,' 'negative' White House correspondents’ dinner
Read more »
For Democrats, all paths to the White House run through the House of SharptonThe Rev. Al Sharpton has turned what was once a fringe organization into one of the most potent players in presidential politics. Some say politics has tamed the civil rights activist as he relishes the access. He says it's the other way around: He's changed politics.
Read more »
House panel votes to subpoena former White House official over security clearancesThe move comes after whistleblower Tricia Newbold’s allegation that her superior, Carl Kline, overruled multiple clearance denials and then retaliated against her when she objected.
Read more »
House Oversight Committee approves subpoena for probe into White House security clearancesThe House Oversight Committee just approved a subpoena for an investigation into White House security clearances
Read more »
House Oversight panel votes to subpoena ex-White House official on security clearance concernsThe Democrat-led panel also voted to authorize subpoenas about the administration's decision to include a citizenship question in the 2020 census.
Read more »
Democrat-led House panel subpoenas ex-White House security chief in security clearance probeElijah Cummings, chairman of the House of Representatives Oversight Committee, led the push to subpoena Carl Kline, who was White House personnel security chief for the first two years of Trump's presidency and now works for the Department of Defense. The committee voted to approve the subpoena
Read more »
White House whistleblower tells House panel about 'systematic' security clearance problemsA White House Personnel Security Office employee alleges that Trump administration officials often ignore national security concerns to grant clearances to people who were initially denied access to top-secret information
Read more »
House committee passes bill to upgrade 401(k) plans amid 'retirement income crisis'The bill would increase the flexibility of plans and improve access to the accounts, particularly for small businesses and their employees.
Read more »