A Coolidge Speech Back in the News—a Century On
President Coolidge delivering his inaugural address, March 4, 1925
(Library of Congress)
By the Editors
Later this month, a president will deliver his inaugural address. But for now a different inaugural address is in the news—a speech delivered 100 years ago.
On Friday, after being reelected Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson reflected on “how really special America is, how unique we are in our place on the globe, and how important it is for us to maintain that.”
Speaker Johnson asked, “How is it that such a young country has become so exceptional—so singular in its importance—that today [it] stands as the world’s leader in liberty and the economy and culture?”
He continued, “A hundred years ago, President Calvin Coolidge answered that very question in his inaugural address.”
Speaker Johnson referred to Coolidge’s inaugural address of March 4, 1925. On that day, President Coolidge said:
We can best serve our own country and most successfully discharge our obligations to humanity by continuing to be openly and candidly, intensely and scrupulously, American.
“I love that,” Johnson said after reading Coolidge’s line. The Speaker continued: “Today, my friends, our nation is the envy of the world. Why? Because we have been marked by a spirit and a people who are explicitly that: we are explicitly American. We don’t try to be like other nations, and we recognize that a strong America is good for the entire world.”
During his inaugural address, President Coolidge took stock of America’s present by reviewing the nation’s history. Specifically, he looked to the dawn of the American Revolution, saying, “We stand at the opening of the one hundred and fiftieth year since our national consciousness first asserted itself by unmistakable action with an array of force.”
Speaker Johnson adopted a similar approach. “This is a momentous time in the history of our nation,” he said. “As members of the 119th Congress, we are stewards of the great American Revolution that began 250 years ago—in 1775 and 1776. It will fall in the time of this Congress, the great anniversary [of the Declaration of Independence].”
America’s 250th birthday should indeed prompt reflections on the Declaration’s origin and meaning, as well as its relevance to America’s present and future. On January 10, the Coolidge Foundation will explore the history and future of America’s great charter at The Declaration: Continuity and Commerce, a conference at the Library of Congress.
In 1926, Coolidge marked the Declaration’s sesquicentennial with one of the great speeches by a president.
In that address, Coolidge offered insights that will run through the conference. As you look ahead to the Declaration’s 250th anniversary, keep these wise words in mind:
About the Declaration there is a finality that is exceedingly restful. It is often asserted that the world has made a great deal of progress since 1776, that we have had new thoughts and new experiences which have given us a great advance over the people of that day, and that we may therefore very well discard their conclusions for something more modern. But that reasoning can not be applied to this great charter. If all men are created equal, that is final. If they are endowed with inalienable rights, that is final. If governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed, that is final. No advance, no progress can be made beyond these propositions.