In praise of John Calvin Coolidge, 30th President of the United States.

Historians aren't kind to Calvin Coolidge. A good and decent man by any measure, nonetheless most historians view President Coolidge as an ineffective president who did nothing in office.

Nothing in office? That's a bad thing? Coolidge presided over the strongest economy is U.S. history by doing what presidents should do: Nothing. Let business do the business of the nation. Unemployent under Coolidge was an astounding 3.6 percent! Coolidge believed that government should not exist soley to collect taxes. Under Collidge, the nation's wealth increased almost 18 percent because he lowered taxes of rich folk thereby increasing government revenue and unburdening the lower and middle classes (hint: when rich folk have more money, they pay workers more and create more jobs).

Historian Robert Sobel offers this insight into Calvin Coolidge's approach as president: "As Governor of Massachusetts, Coolidge supported wages and hours legislation, opposed child labor, imposed economic controls during World War I, favored safety measures in factories, and even worker representation on corporate boards. Did he support these measures while president? No, because in the 1920s, such matters were considered the responsibilities of state and local governments."

So sometimes doing nothing is a good thing.

So next time you see one of those hyped presidential polls and Coolidge--again--ranks near the bottom, remember to take the survey with a grain of salt--a grain of salt the size of Manhattan.