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204-469: Coolidge adeptly handled the aftermath of several Harding administration scandals, and by the end of 1924 he had dismissed most officials implicated in the scandals. He presided over a strong economy and sought to shrink the regulatory role of the federal government. Along with Secretary of the Treasury Andrew Mellon , Coolidge won the passage of three major tax cuts. Using powers delegated to him by

408-487: A stenographer , and seven other office personnel. The first man to hold the office of Secretary to the President was John Addison Porter whose failing health meant he was soon succeeded by George B. Cortelyou . Radio and the advent of media coverage soon meant that Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson too expanded the duties of their respective secretaries to dealing with reporters and giving daily press briefings. At

612-509: A British-born antiques dealer 14 years her junior. Two years after the Lees' divorce in 1928, Nora Lee resumed the surname Mellon, at the request of her son, Paul. In the 1920s, while Mellon served as Secretary of the Treasury, Ailsa was courted by several influential men, including Otto Christian Archibald von Bismarck , Robert Horne , and Gelasio Caetani . In 1926, in the "greatest society event that

816-584: A Carnegie protege, Frank W. Haskell. Mellon also invested in mining concerns, becoming vice president of the Trade Dollar Consolidated Mining Company. Mellon and Henry Clay Frick enjoyed a long-lasting business and social relationship, and Frick frequently hosted Mellon, attorney Philander C. Knox , inventor George Westinghouse , and others for poker games. Frick and Mellon both joined the Duquesne Club and, after Frick established

1020-570: A bank located in Pittsburgh. Andrew joined his father at the bank, quickly becoming a valued employee despite being in his early teens. Andrew also attended the Western University of Pennsylvania (which was later renamed the University of Pittsburgh ), but he never graduated. After leaving Western University, Andrew briefly worked at a lumber and coal business before joining T. Mellon & Sons as

1224-474: A bonus to World War I veterans. Mellon did, however, win one legislative victory, as he convinced Congress to create the Board of Tax Appeals to adjudicate disputes between taxpayers and the government. Mellon had originally planned to retire after one presidential term but decided to remain in the cabinet in the hope of presiding over the full enactment of his taxation proposals. In the 1924 presidential election ,

1428-692: A boom in the German economy, as well as a sentiment of international cooperation. Building on the success of the Dawes Plan, U.S. ambassador Alanson B. Houghton helped organize the Locarno Conference in October 1925. The conference was designed to ease tensions between Germany and France, the latter of which feared a German rearmament. In the Locarno Treaties , France, Belgium, and Germany each agreed to respect

1632-613: A cabinet position as a prestigious capstone to his career. Mellon agreed to accept appointment as Secretary of the Treasury in February 1921, and his nomination was quickly confirmed by the United States Senate . Though Mellon's supporters believed that he was highly qualified to address the economic issues facing the country, critics of the Harding administration saw the Mellon appointment as

1836-564: A challenge to Coolidge, while automobile magnate Henry Ford endorsed Coolidge for president in December 1923. The Republican Convention was held on June 10–12, 1924, in Cleveland, Ohio ; Coolidge was nominated on the first ballot. Coolidge's nomination made him the second unelected president to win his party's nomination for another term, after Theodore Roosevelt . Prior to the convention, Coolidge courted progressive Senator William Borah to join

2040-697: A co-owner and vice president. During the 1880s, Mellon began to expand the bank's activities. Along with Frick, Mellon gained control of the Pittsburgh National Bank of Commerce, a national bank that was authorized to print banknotes . Mellon also acquired or helped found the Union Insurance Company, City Deposit Bank, the Fidelity Title and Trust Company, and the Union Trust Company. He branched out into industrial concerns, becoming

2244-530: A deceased elected president, he was obligated to retain his predecessor's counselors and policies until the next election. He kept Harding's able speechwriter Judson T. Welliver ; Stuart Crawford replaced Welliver in November 1925. Coolidge appointed C. Bascom Slemp , a Virginia Congressman and experienced federal politician, to work jointly with Edward T. Clark, a Massachusetts Republican organizer whom he retained from his vice-presidential staff, as Secretaries to

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2448-505: A director of the Pittsburgh Petroleum Exchange and a co-founder of two natural gas companies that collectively controlled 35,000 acres of gas lands in the late 1880s. In 1890, Thomas Mellon transferred his properties to Andrew, who would manage the properties on behalf of himself, his parents, and his brothers. In late 1894, Thomas transferred all of his remaining assets to Andrew. Despite the large sums entrusted to Andrew,

2652-673: A director of various other companies, including the Pennsylvania Railroad and the American Locomotive Company . Mellon was deeply involved in the financing of World War I , as the Union Trust Company and other Mellon institutions provided millions of dollars in loans to the United Kingdom and France, and Mellon himself invested in Liberty bonds . In 1887, Frick, Andrew, and Richard Mellon jointly purchased Old Overholt ,

2856-487: A divorce the following year. To avoid a public scandal, Andrew reluctantly agreed to a separation in 1909. Seeking to hold divorce proceedings privately before a judge rather than publicly before a jury, in 1911 Mellon convinced the Pennsylvania legislature to amend a law that had required a jury trial in divorce proceedings. In response, Nora attacked Mellon in the press, and the divorce proceedings were widely covered by

3060-528: A full-time employee in 1873. That same year, the Panic of 1873 devastated the local and national economy, wiping out a portion of the Mellon fortune. With Andrew taking a leading role at T. Mellon & Sons, the bank quickly recovered, and by late 1874 the bank's deposits had reached the level they had been at before the onset of the Panic. Mellon's role at T. Mellon & Sons continued to grow after 1873, and in 1876 he

3264-440: A head a federal commission in charge of flood relief, scholars argue that Coolidge overall showed a lack of interest in federal flood control. Coolidge did not believe that personally visiting the region after the floods would accomplish anything, and that it would be seen as mere political grandstanding. He also did not want to incur the federal spending that flood control would require; he believed property owners should bear much of

3468-487: A major part of the federal government's revenue system with the passage of the Revenue Act of 1913 , and federal taxation on income had increased during World War I to provide funding for the war effort. According to M. Susan Murnane, major reforms to the federal income tax in the aftermath of World War I were "inevitable", but the exact nature of the tax system in the 1920s was debated by conservatives and progressives within

3672-661: A majority of U.S. households by 1931 and 75 percent of U.S. households by 1937. The Radio Act of 1927 established the Federal Radio Commission (FRC) under the auspices of the Commerce Department, and the FRC granted numerous licenses to large, commercial radio stations that demonstrated that they served "the public interest, convenience, or necessity", and the Act also established the equal-time rule for radio broadcasters in

3876-639: A moratorium on German debt repayments. After Mellon returned to the United States in August 1931, he was confronted by another series of bank failures. Among the banks that failed was the Bank of Pittsburgh, the lone remaining major Pittsburgh bank not controlled by the Mellon family. Again, following Hoover's lead, Mellon presided over the creation of the National Credit Association, a voluntary initiative among

4080-456: A permanent fixture in the White House, and the appointments secretary was reduced to only functional importance. The Appointments Secretary position was eliminated in 1981, with the responsibilities transferred to the recently created White House Deputy Chief of Staff position. The prior role of Secretary to the President should not be confused with the modern president's personal secretary who

4284-439: A phenomenon known as overproduction . Contributing factors to agricultural overproduction included increasing competition on world markets and the introduction of tractors , which increased the productivity of individual farmers and opened up farmland that had previously been devoted to growing crops used to feed farm animals. Overproduction led to an ongoing farm crisis that proved devastating to many rural areas. The farm crisis

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4488-480: A power vacuum in Pennsylvania Republican politics. Along with his nephew, William Larimer Mellon, Mellon became an influential player in Pennsylvania politics, and their support helped ensure the elections of Senator David A. Reed and Senator George W. Pepper in 1922. Mellon was unable to assert the same level of control that Boies Penrose had had over state politics, and his leadership of the state party

4692-685: A private duty to protect those rights." He appointed no known members of the Ku Klux Klan to office; indeed, the Klan lost most of its influence during his term. He also repeatedly called for laws to prohibit lynching , saying in his 1923 State of the Union address that it was a "hideous crime" of which African-Americans were "by no means the sole sufferers" but made up the "majority of the victims." However, congressional attempts to pass anti-lynching legislation were blocked by Southern Democrats. Coolidge did not emphasize

4896-435: A progressive Republican and potential rival for the 1924 presidential nomination, quickly settled the strike with little input from the federal government. Pinchot's settlement of the strike backfired, as he took the blame for rising coal prices, and Coolidge quickly consolidated his power among Republican elites. Potential opponents like Governor Frank Lowden of Illinois and General Leonard Wood failed to generate support for

5100-468: A prominent member of the local Republican Party , and in 1859 he won election to a position on the Pennsylvania court of common pleas . Because Thomas was suspicious of both private and public schools, he built a schoolhouse for his children and hired a teacher; Andrew attended this school beginning at age five. In 1869, after leaving his judicial position, Thomas Mellon established T. Mellon & Sons,

5304-608: A prominent place in Coolidge's Cabinet, in part because Coolidge found value in Hoover's ability to win positive publicity with his pro-business proposals. Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes directed Coolidge's foreign policy until he resigned in 1925 following Coolidge's re-election. He was replaced by Frank B. Kellogg , who had previously served as a senator and as the ambassador to Great Britain. Coolidge made two other appointments following his re-election, with William M. Jardine taking

5508-457: A reduction would minimize tax avoidance and would not affect federal revenue because it would lead to greater economic growth. He hoped that tax reform would encourage high earners to move their savings from tax-exempt state and municipal bonds to taxable, higher yield industrial stocks. Though much of the tax plan that he proposed had been developed by former Wilson administration officials Russell Cornell Leffingwell and Seymour Parker Gilbert ,

5712-459: A salary of $ 2,500. The first man to hold such office officially and to be paid by the government instead of by the president, was Buchanan's nephew J. B. Henry . By Ulysses S. Grant 's presidency, the White House staff had grown to three. By 1900, the office had grown in such stature that Congress elevated the position to "Secretary to the President", in addition to including on the White House staff two assistant secretaries, two executive clerks,

5916-590: A sign that Harding would "reseat the power of special privileged interests, the powers of avarice and greed, the powers that seek self-aggrandizement at the expense of the general public". Harding paired the nomination of Mellon with that of Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover , who was distrusted by many of the same Senate Republicans who favored Mellon's candidacy. Before joining the cabinet, Mellon sold his banking stock to his brother, Richard, but he continued to hold his non-banking stock. Through Richard and other business associates, Mellon continued to be involved with

6120-540: A speaking tour of the Western United States. Vice President Coolidge was visiting his family home in Vermont when he received word by a messenger of Harding's death. Coolidge's father, a notary public , administered the oath of office in the family parlor at 2:47 a.m. on August 3, 1923. The following day, Coolidge traveled to Washington, D.C. , where he was sworn in again by Justice Adolph A. Hoehling Jr. of

6324-453: A successful legal practice in Pittsburgh , and in 1843 he married Sarah Jane Negley, an heiress descended from some of the first settlers of Pittsburgh. Thomas became a wealthy landowner and real estate speculator, and he and his wife had eight children, five of whom survived to adulthood. Andrew Mellon, the fourth son and sixth child of Thomas and Sarah, was born in 1855., Thomas Mellon became

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6528-536: A whiskey distillery located in West Overton, Pennsylvania . At the time, Old Overholt was one of the largest and most respected whiskey producers in the country. In 1907, as prohibition became more popular across the country, Frick and Mellon removed their names from the distilling license but retained ownership in the company. It is believed that Mellon's connections in the Treasury Department are what allowed

6732-649: The Meriam Report of 1928. Although not an isolationist, Coolidge was reluctant to enter into foreign alliances. He considered the 1920 Republican victory as a rejection of the Wilsonian position that the United States should join the League of Nations . While not completely opposed to the idea, Coolidge believed the League, as then constituted, did not serve American interests, and he did not advocate membership. He spoke in favor of

6936-458: The 1923 Great Kantō earthquake , which killed as many as 200,000 Japanese and left another 2 million homeless. However, relations soured with the passage of the Immigration Act of 1924, which banned immigration from Japan to the United States. U.S. officials encouraged Japan to protest the ban while the legislation was drafted, but Japanese threats backfired as supporters of the legislation used

7140-436: The 1928 Republican National Convention and was influential with Republicans throughout the country. Though they had maintained an amicable relationship in public, Mellon privately distrusted Hoover, resented Hoover's engagement in the affairs of other cabinet departments and feared that a President Hoover would move away from Mellon's tax policies. Several Republicans urged Mellon to run for president, but Mellon believed that he

7344-471: The 1928 Republican National Convention . Accepting the presidential nomination, Hoover stated, "we in America today are nearer to the final triumph over poverty than ever before in the history of any land...given the chance to go forward with the policies of the last eight years, we shall soon with the help of God be in sight of the day when poverty will be banished from this nation." Having been badly defeated in

7548-676: The Andrew Mellon Building . The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation , the product of the merger of the Avalon Foundation and the Old Dominion Foundation (set up separately by his children), is named in his honor, as is the 378-foot US Coast Guard Cutter Mellon (WHEC-717) . Andrew W. Mellon appears in the HBO drama series Boardwalk Empire , in the fifth, eighth and twelfth episodes of the third season, in his capacity as Secretary of

7752-600: The Caribbean . For 88 years he was the only sitting president to have visited Cuba, until Barack Obama did so in 2016. Under the leadership of economist Edwin W. Kemmerer , the U.S. extended its influence in Latin America through financial advisers. With the support of the State Department, Kemmerer negotiated agreements with Colombia , Chile , and other countries in which the countries received loans and agreed to follow

7956-583: The Child Labor Amendment , was never ratified by the requisite number of states, and, as there was no time limit set for its ratification, is still pending before the states. However, the Supreme Court made the Child Labor Amendment a moot issue with its ruling in the 1941 case of United States v. Darby Lumber Co. . The Eighteenth Amendment , ratified in 1920, had effectively established

8160-748: The Federal Reserve , which kept interest rates low and allowed for the expansion of margin trading in the stock market. The 1922 Fordney–McCumber Tariff allowed the president some leeway in determining tariff rates, and Coolidge used his power to raise the already-high rates set by Fordney–McCumber. He also staffed the United States Tariff Commission , a board that advised the president on tariff rates, with businessmen who favored high tariffs. Secretary of Commerce Hoover energetically used government auspices to promote business efficiency and develop new industries like air travel and radio. Hoover

8364-589: The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Interstate Commerce Commission who did little to restrict the activities of businesses under their jurisdiction. Under leadership of Chairman William E. Humphrey , a Coolidge appointee, the FTC largely stopped prosecuting anti-trust cases, allowing companies like Alcoa to dominate entire industries. Coolidge also avoided interfering with the workings of

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8568-591: The Geneva Naval Conference . Coolidge was impressed with the success of the Washington Naval Conference of 1921–22, and called a second international conference in 1927 to deal with related naval issues, especially putting limits on the number of warships under 10,000 tons. The Geneva Naval Conference failed because France refused to participate, and also because most of the delegates were admirals who did not want to limit their fleets. After

8772-565: The House Ways and Means Committee jointly prepared a bill setting the top marginal rate at the level advocated by Mellon, but opposition in the Senate from progressives like Senator Robert M. La Follette limited the size of the tax cuts. In November 1921, Congress passed and Harding signed the Revenue Act of 1921 , which raised personal tax exemptions and lowered the top marginal tax rate to 58%. Because it differed from his original proposals, Mellon

8976-635: The Immigration Act of 1924 , which greatly restricted immigration into the United States. In foreign policy, Coolidge continued to keep the United States out of membership or major engagement with the League of Nations . However he supported disarmament agreements and sponsored the Kellogg–Briand Pact of 1928 to outlaw most wars. Coolidge was greatly admired during his time in office, and he surprised many by declining to seek another term. Public opinion on Coolidge soured shortly after he left office as

9180-506: The McKinley Tariff of 1890. During the early 20th century, Mellon was dismayed by the rise of progressivism and the antitrust actions pursued by the presidential administrations of Theodore Roosevelt , William Howard Taft , and Woodrow Wilson . He especially opposed the Taft administration's investigations into Alcoa, which in 1912 signed a consent decree rather than going to trial. In

9384-532: The Mexican Revolution , the U.S. had refused to recognize the government of Álvaro Obregón , one of the revolution's leaders. Secretary of State Hughes had worked with Mexico to normalize relations during the Harding administration, and President Coolidge recognized the Mexican government in 1923. To help Obregón defeat a rebellion, Coolidge also lifted an embargo on Mexico and encouraged U.S. banks to loan money to

9588-616: The National Gallery of Art . His philanthropic efforts also played a major role in the later establishment of Carnegie Mellon University and the National Portrait Gallery . Mellon's paternal grandparents, both of whom were Ulster Scots , migrated to the United States from County Tyrone , Ireland, in 1818. With their son, Thomas Mellon , they settled in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania . Thomas Mellon established

9792-507: The Northern Expedition when it resulted in attacks on foreigners, and refused to consider renegotiating treaties reached with China when it had been under the rule of the Qing dynasty . In 1927, Chiang purged his government of communists and began to seek U.S. support. Seeking closer relations with China, Secretary of State Kellogg agreed to grant tariff autonomy, meaning that China would have

9996-506: The Occupation of the Ruhr in 1923 stirred him to action. On Secretary of State Hughes's initiative, Coolidge appointed Charles Dawes to lead an international commission to reach an agreement on Germany's reparations. The resulting Dawes Plan provided for restructuring of the German debt, and the United States loaned money to Germany to help it repay its debt to other countries. The Dawes Plan led to

10200-883: The Pittsburgh Coal Company , the Carborundum Company, Union Steel Company, the McClintic-Marshall Construction Company, Gulf Oil , and numerous others. He was also an influential donor to the Republican Party during the Gilded Age and the Progressive Era . In 1921, newly elected president Warren G. Harding chose Mellon as his Secretary of the Treasury . Mellon would remain in office until 1932, serving under Harding, Calvin Coolidge , and Herbert Hoover , all three of whom were members of

10404-489: The Revenue Act of 1932 , which included many of the Treasury Department's proposals. In early 1932, Congressman Wright Patman of Texas initiated impeachment proceedings against Mellon, contending that Mellon had violated numerous federal laws designed to prevent conflicts of interest. Though Mellon had defeated similar investigations in the past, his falling popularity left him unable to effectively counter Patman's charges. Hoover removed Mellon from Washington by offering him

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10608-408: The Revenue Act of 1935 rescinded many of Mellon's tax policies and contained other provisions that were designed to increase taxation on top earners and corporations. Even after leaving office, Mellon continued to be vilified by many in the public, and in 1933 Harvey O'Connor published a popular and unfavorable biography, Mellon's Millions . Democrats won effective control of Allegheny County in

10812-432: The South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club , Mellon became one of that club's first members. The South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club built the South Fork Dam , which supported an artificial lake that the club used for boating and fishing. In 1889, the dam broke, causing the Johnstown Flood , which killed 2,000 people and destroyed 1,600 homes. In the aftermath of the flood, Knox led a legal defense that successfully argued that

11016-467: The Soviet sale of Hermitage paintings . Twenty-one paintings , of the highest quality, were later given to the National Gallery of Art. Mellon decided to use his fortune and art collection to establish a national art museum in Washington modeled after the National Gallery in London. In 1936, Mellon presented President Roosevelt with an offer to establish a national art museum to which Mellon would donate his art collection as well as an endowment, while

11220-421: The Supreme Court of the District of Columbia . Coolidge addressed Congress when it reconvened on December 6, 1923, expressing support for many of Harding's policies, including Harding's formal budgeting process and the enforcement of immigration restrictions. Although a few of Harding's cabinet appointees were scandal-tarred, Coolidge initially retained all of them out of an ardent conviction that, as successor to

11424-405: The Supreme Court of the United States . Stone was Coolidge's fellow Amherst alumnus, a Wall Street lawyer, and a conservative Republican. Stone was serving as dean of Columbia Law School when Coolidge appointed him to be attorney general in 1924 to restore the reputation tarnished by Harding's Attorney General, Harry M. Daugherty . Stone proved to be a firm believer in judicial restraint and

11628-460: The Texas oil boom , the Mellons also helped J. M. Guffey establish the Guffey Company. The Mellons later removed Guffey as the head of his company, and in 1907 they reorganized the Guffey Company as Gulf Oil and installed William Larimer Mellon Sr. (a son of Andrew Mellon's older brother, James Ross Mellon) as the head of Gulf Oil. The success of Mellon's financial empire and his varied investments made him, according to biographer David Cannadine,

11832-472: The Union Trust Company in Pittsburgh in 1889. By the end of 1913, Mellon National Bank held more money in deposits than any other bank in Pittsburgh, and the second-largest bank in the region was controlled by Union Trust. In the course of his business career, Mellon owned or helped finance large companies including Alcoa , the New York Shipbuilding Corporation , Old Overholt whiskey, Standard Steel Car Company , Westinghouse Electric Corporation , Koppers ,

12036-521: The White House Office . As a consequence, the office of Secretary to the President was greatly diminished in stature (mostly due to the lack of a sufficient replacement to Roosevelt's confidant Louis McHenry Howe who had died in 1936) and had many of its duties supplanted by the Appointments Secretary. The appointments secretary was the guardian of the president's time. He had the responsibility of acting as "gatekeeper" and decided who got to meet with him. Eisenhower appointed Arthur H. Vandenberg Jr. to

12240-402: The governor of Massachusetts from 1919 through 1921 was nominated at the 1920 Republican National Convention for the ticket of Warren G. Harding for president and Coolidge for vice president. Coolidge became the Vice President of the United States after the Republican ticket was victorious in the 1920 presidential election . On August 2, 1923, President Harding died unexpectedly while on

12444-473: The laissez-faire ideology, which some critics claim led to the Great Depression . Historian Robert Sobel argues instead that Coolidge's belief in federalism guided his economic policy, writing, "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...such matters were considered

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12648-445: The national debt of the United States in the aftermath of World War I . Mellon also helped fund and manage Kennywood Park in West Mifflin , Pennsylvania. Andrew began working at his father's Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania, bank, T. Mellon & Sons , in the early 1870s, eventually becoming the leading figure in the institution. He later renamed T. Mellon & Sons as Mellon National Bank and established another financial institution,

12852-432: The " Roaring Twenties ." Unemployment remained low while the country's gross domestic product rose from $ 85.2 billion in 1924 to $ 101.4 in 1929. According to Nathan Miller, "the postwar years ushered in an age of consumerism with a broader base of participation than had ever existed before in America or anywhere else." The number of automobiles in the United States increased from 7 million in 1919 to 23 million in 1929, while

13056-429: The "Mellon plan" was fully realized. He also presided over a reduction in the national debt, which dropped substantially in the 1920s. Mellon's influence in state and national politics reached its zenith during Coolidge's presidency. Journalist William Allen White noted that "so completely did Andrew Mellon dominate the White House in the days when the Coolidge administration was at its zenith that it would be fair to call

13260-481: The "single most significant individual in the economic life and progress of western Pennsylvania" in the first decade of the 20th century. The Panic of 1907 devastated several companies based in Pittsburgh, ending a period of strong growth. Some of Mellon's investments experienced a sustained down period after 1907, but most experienced a quick recovery. Mellon also became an investor in George Westinghouse 's Westinghouse Electric Corporation after he helped prevent

13464-531: The 1922 Fordney–McCumber Tariff , Coolidge kept tariff rates high in order to protect American manufacturing profits and high wages. He blocked passage of the McNary–Haugen Farm Relief Bill , which would have involved the federal government in the persistent farm crisis by raising prices paid to farmers for five crops. The strong economy combined with restrained government spending produced consistent government surpluses, and total federal debt shrank by one quarter during Coolidge's presidency. Coolidge also signed

13668-458: The 1924 elections, it immediately began working on another bill designed to lower tax rates on the highest earners. In February 1926, Coolidge signed the Revenue Act of 1926 , which reduced the top marginal rate to 25%. Mellon was extremely pleased by the passage of the act, because, unlike the Revenue Act of 1921 and the Revenue Act of 1924, the Revenue Act of 1926 closely reflected Mellon's proposals. In addition to cutting tax rates on top earners,

13872-416: The 1928 presidential campaign instead centered on Smith's character, affiliation with the Catholic Church, and opposition to Prohibition. Hoover won a landslide victory, even taking Smith's home state of New York and several states in the Solid South . Jason Roberts in 2014 argues that Coolidge's legacy is still passionately debated by scholars and politicians. He writes: Coolidge was generally popular with

14076-579: The 1930s as it became clear that certain policies had come undone under pressure from Germany and Japan. In the 1980s, Ronald Reagan and other conservatives looked to the Coolidge administration as a model of laissez-faire policy. Ferrell praises Coolidge for avoiding major scandals and reducing the debt, but criticizes Coolidge's inactivity in foreign policy and his failure to respond to rising stock market speculation. Andrew Mellon Andrew William Mellon ( / ˈ m ɛ l ə n / ; March 24, 1855 – August 26, 1937), known also as A. W. Mellon ,

14280-749: The 1933 elections, and the following year Democrat Joseph F. Guffey won Pennsylvania's Senate election and George Howard Earle III won the state's gubernatorial election. Mellon endured numerous attacks during these campaigns, and his unpopularity in Pittsburgh led him to spend most of his final years in Washington rather than his home town. In the 1930s, the Roosevelt administration conducted several high-profile tax evasion prosecutions against individuals such as Thomas W. Lamont and Jimmy Walker . In response to accusations levied by Republican Congressman Louis Thomas McFadden of Pennsylvania in early 1933, Attorney General Homer Cummings began an inquiry into Mellon's tax history. Between February 1935 and May 1936,

14484-400: The American people. He inspired trust, especially for his quiet devotion to duty. Claude Feuss wrote in 1940: McCoy emphasizes Coolidge's efficiency as president: Critical commentary increased with the onset of the Great Depression shortly after he left office, when opponents linked the economic troubles to Coolidge's economic policies. Coolidge's reputation in foreign policy also suffered in

14688-472: The Board of Tax Appeals heard a widely covered case in which the federal government accused Mellon of tax fraud. During the proceedings, Mellon divulged numerous details of his business career that had previously been unknown to the public. Mellon was diagnosed with cancer in November 1936. His health declined in 1937, and he died on August 26, 1937. Newspapers across the country took note of his death. Secretary of

14892-494: The Bonus Bill, handing the president a defeat in his first major legislative battle. With his legislative priorities in jeopardy following the debate over the Bonus Bill, Coolidge backed off on his goal of lowering the top tax rate down to 25 percent. After much legislative haggling, Congress passed the Revenue Act of 1924 , which reduced income tax rates and eliminated all income taxation for some two million people. The act reduced

15096-612: The British to allow Gulf Oil to operate in Kuwait , a British protectorate in the oil-rich region of the Persian Gulf . Defying Mellon's expectations, Hoover was defeated by Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1932 presidential election . Mellon left office when Hoover's term ended in March 1933, returning to private life after twelve years of government service. Knox and Penrose both died in 1921, leaving

15300-552: The Federal Reserve Board raised the discount rate to six percent. The higher rate failed to curb speculation, and the activity on the stock market continued to grow. In October 1929, the New York Stock Exchange suffered the worst crash in its history in what was called " Black Tuesday ". As the vast majority of Americans did not own shares in the stock market, the crash did not immediately have disastrous effects on

15504-403: The Federal Reserve Board to lower interest rates in 1921 and 1924; lower interest rates contributed to a booming economy, but they also encouraged stock market speculation. In 1928, responding to increasing fears of the dangers of speculation and a booming stock market, the Federal Reserve Board began raising interest rates. Mellon favored another interest rate increase in 1929, and in August 1929

15708-536: The House and Senate. After the 1924 election, many pundits assumed that Coolidge would seek another term in 1928, but Coolidge had other plans. While on vacation in mid-1927, Coolidge issued a terse statement, " I do not choose to run ", for a second full term as president. In his memoirs, Coolidge explained his decision not to run: "The Presidential office takes a heavy toll of those who occupy it and those who are dear to them. While we should not refuse to spend and be spent in

15912-527: The McNary-Haugen bill were defeated in 1924 and 1925, but the bill remained popular as the farm crisis continued. A decline in cotton prices in 1925 raised the possibility that Southern congressmen would join with Western congressmen in supporting a major agricultural bill. Seeking to prevent the creation of a major new government program, Coolidge sought to peel away potential supporters of McNary-Haugen and mobilized businessmen and other groups in opposition to

16116-587: The Mellon banks flourished in the first years of the 20th century. While Mellon's financial empire prospered, his investments in other areas, including Pittsburgh's streetcar network, the Union Steel Company (which was bought out by U.S. Steel ), and the Carborundum Company, also paid off handsomely. Another successful Mellon investment, the Standard Steel Car Company , was created in partnership with three former U.S. Steel executives. As part of

16320-494: The Mexican government. In 1924, Plutarco Elías Calles took office as President of Mexico, and Calles sought to limit American property claims and take control of the holdings of the Catholic Church. However, Ambassador Dwight Morrow convinced Calles to allow Americans to retain their rights to property purchased before 1917, and Mexico and the United States enjoyed good relations for the remainder of Coolidge's presidency. With

16524-516: The Navy Edwin Denby , and additional scandals implicated Attorney General Harry M. Daugherty and former Veterans Bureau director Charles R. Forbes . A bipartisan Senate investigation led by Thomas J. Walsh and Robert LaFolette began just weeks into Coolidge's presidency. As the investigation uncovered further misconduct, Coolidge appointed Atlee Pomerene and Owen Roberts as special prosecutors , but he remained personally unconvinced as to

16728-409: The President (a position equivalent to the modern White House Chief of Staff ). Perhaps the most powerful person in Coolidge's Cabinet was Secretary of the Treasury Andrew Mellon , who controlled the administration's financial policies and was regarded by many, including House Minority Leader John Nance Garner , as more powerful than Coolidge himself. Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover also held

16932-628: The President became a rank generally shared by the Chief of Staff with such senior aides as Deputy Chiefs of Staff, the White House Counsel , the White House Press Secretary , and others. This new system didn't catch on straight away. Democrats Kennedy and Johnson still relied on their appointments secretaries instead and it was not until the Nixon administration that the Chief of Staff became

17136-416: The Republican Party. Mellon sought to reform federal taxation in the aftermath of World War I. He argued cutting tax rates on top earners would generate more tax revenue for the government, but otherwise left in place a progressive income tax . Some of Mellon's proposals were enacted by the Revenue Act of 1921 and the Revenue Act of 1924 , but it was not until the passage of the Revenue Act of 1926 that

17340-521: The Republican Party. Unlike the progressives in his party, Mellon rejected the redistributive nature of the taxation system that had been left in place by the Wilson administration. Owing in part to the high debts left over from the war, Mellon did not join with some conservatives in the party, who favored the virtual abolition of the income tax in favor of high tariff rates, excise taxes, a national sales tax, or some combination thereof. Mellon instead advocated

17544-538: The Republican nomination on the first ballot of the convention, and he went on to defeat Al Smith in the 1928 presidential election . Defying widespread expectations that he would retire, Mellon chose to stay on as Secretary of the Treasury. Along with Secretary of Agriculture James Wilson and Secretary of Labor James J. Davis , Mellon is one of only three cabinet members to serve in the same post under three consecutive presidents. Secretary Mellon had helped persuade

17748-609: The Republicans campaigned on further tax cuts, while both the Democrats and third-party candidate Robert La Follette denounced Mellon's tax proposals as "a device to relieve multi-millionaires at the expense of other taxpayers". Buoyed by the strong economy, and overcoming the scandals of the Harding years , Coolidge won re-election by a decisive margin. Coolidge saw his victory as a mandate to pursue his favored economic policies, including further tax cuts. When Congress reconvened after

17952-483: The Senate Banking Committee) to expose Mellon's crimes and abuse of power for personal gain. Secretary to the President (United States) The Secretary to the President is a long-standing position in the United States government, known by many different titles during its history. In the 19th- and early 20th-century it was a White House position that carried out all the tasks now spread throughout

18156-507: The Supreme Court more discretion over its workload. In the waning days of Harding's administration, several scandals had begun to emerge into public view. Though Coolidge was not implicated in any corrupt dealings, he was faced with the fallout of the scandals in the early days of his presidency. The Teapot Dome Scandal tainted the careers of former Secretary of the Interior Albert B. Fall (who had resigned in March 1923) and Secretary of

18360-478: The Supreme Court twice struck down federal laws regulating and taxing goods produced by employees under the ages of 14 and 16, Congress approved an amendment to the United States Constitution that would specifically authorize Congress to regulate "labor of persons under eighteen years of age" . Coolidge expressed support for the amendment in his first State of the Union. The amendment, commonly known as

18564-509: The Treasury Henry Morgenthau Jr. stated that Mellon had lived through "an epoch in the economic history of the nation, and his passing takes one of the most important industrial and financial figures of our time." Months after Mellon's death, the Board of Tax Appeals handed down a ruling exonerating Mellon of all tax fraud charges. In the early 1880s, Mellon had a serious relationship with Fannie Larimer Jones, but he broke off

18768-551: The Treasury Department to his deputy, Ogden L. Mills . After the 1926 elections, Mellon and Mills sought to cut the corporate tax and fully repeal the estate tax. The Revenue Act of 1928 did indeed cut the corporate tax, but the estate tax was left unchanged. Mellon also focused on the construction of new federal buildings, and his efforts led to the construction of several buildings in the Federal Triangle . In 1928, Mellon stated that "in no other nation, and at no other time in

18972-948: The Treasury. His character is played by Carnegie Mellon alumnus James Cromwell . In the alternate history / time travel story "A Slip in Time" by S. M. Stirling , featuring a history in which the First World War was avoided and the Austro-Hungarian Empire survived, Andrew Mellon was the President of the United States in 1926. Mellon is the subject of three unflattering chapters in Matt Stoller's 2019 book, Goliath: The 100 Year War Between Monopoly Power and Democracy , which recounts efforts by populists in Washington (namely, Congressman Wright Patman ; Roosevelt administration lawyer Robert H. Jackson ; and Ferdinand Pecora , attorney for

19176-450: The U.S. economy as a whole. Mellon had little sympathy for the speculators who lost their money, and he was philosophically opposed to an interventionist economic policy designed to address the stock market crash. Nonetheless, Mellon immediately began calling for cuts to the discount rate, which would reach two percent in mid-1930, and successfully urged Congress to pass a bill providing for temporary, across-the-board tax cuts. Mellon supported

19380-760: The United States . At Hoover's request, Congress passed the Air Commerce Act , which granted the Commerce Department the authority to regulate air travel. The Coolidge administration provided matching funds for roads under the authorization of the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1921 . The total mileage of highways doubled in the 1920s, and the administration helped establish the United States Numbered Highway System , which provided for orderly designation of highways and uniform signage on those highways. Some have labeled Coolidge as an adherent of

19584-564: The United States and France agreed to the Mellon-Berenger Agreement , which reduced France's debt and set terms for repayment. Coolidge surprised many observers by announcing that he would not seek another term in August 1927. The decision left Hoover as the presumed front-runner for the 1928 presidential election , but many conservatives within the party opposed Hoover's candidacy. The conservative resistance to Hoover centered around Mellon, who controlled Pennsylvania's delegation at

19788-517: The United States joining the Permanent Court of International Justice (World Court), provided that the nation would not be bound by advisory decisions. In 1926, the Senate eventually approved joining the Court (with reservations). The League of Nations accepted the reservations, but it suggested some modifications of its own. The Senate failed to act on the modifications, and the United States never joined

19992-631: The United States, but mechanization, the entrance of women into the labor force, and the migration of Southern blacks into the North had all contributed to reduced demand for foreign-born labor. Coolidge endorsed an extension of the cap on immigration in his 1923 State of the Union, but his administration was less supportive of the continuation of the National Origins Formula , which effectively restricted immigration from countries outside of Northwestern Europe . Secretary of State Hughes strongly opposed

20196-458: The United States, second only to Hoover himself. Facing this unprecedented economic catastrophe, Mellon urged Hoover to refrain from using the government to intervene in the depression. Mellon believed that economic recessions, such as those that had occurred in 1873 and 1907, were a necessary part of the business cycle because they purged the economy. In his memoirs, Hoover wrote that Mellon advised him to "liquidate labor, liquidate stocks, liquidate

20400-569: The White House Office Oval Office Operations department who has a desk directly outside the Oval Office . During the nineteenth century, presidents had few staff resources. Thomas Jefferson had one messenger and one secretary (referred to as an amanuensis in the common parlance of the time) at his disposal, both of whose salaries were paid by the president personally. In fact, all presidents up to James Buchanan paid

20604-468: The White House lacked statutory or budgetary authority to create new staff positions. It wasn't until 1939, during Franklin D. Roosevelt's second term in office, that the foundations of the modern White House staff were created using a formal structure. Roosevelt was able to get Congress to approve the creation of the Executive Office of the President reporting directly to the president, which included

20808-469: The World Court. In the aftermath of World War I , several European nations struggled with debt, much of which was owed to the United States. These European nations were in turn owed an enormous sum from Germany in the form of World War I reparations , and the German economy buckled under the weight of these reparations. Coolidge rejected calls to forgive Europe's debt or lower tariffs on European goods, but

21012-628: The act also raised the personal exemption for federal income taxes, abolished the gift tax , reduced the estate tax rate, and repealed a provision that had required the public disclosure of federal income tax returns. Meanwhile, the booming economy fostered a $ 400 million budget surplus in 1926, and the country's national debt dropped from $ 24 billion in early 1921 to $ 19.6 billion at the end of fiscal year 1926. Government revenues increased considerably under Mellon's plan, largely collected from higher-income earners. With his top priority of tax reform accomplished, Mellon increasingly turned over management of

21216-582: The administration the reign of Coolidge and Mellon." Mellon's national reputation collapsed following the Wall Street Crash of 1929 and the onset of the Great Depression . He participated in various efforts by the Hoover administration to revive the economy and maintain the international economic order, but opposed direct government intervention in the economy. After Congress began impeachment proceedings against Mellon, President Hoover shifted Mellon to

21420-475: The advice of U.S. financial advisers. These "Kemmerized" countries received substantial investments and became increasingly dependent on trade with the United States. While the countries enjoyed good economic conditions in the 1920s, many would struggle in the 1930s. Relations with Japan had warmed with the signing of the Washington Naval Treaty and were further bolstered by U.S. aid in the aftermath of

21624-497: The aftermath of World War I, he provided financial support to Henry Cabot Lodge and other Republicans in their successful campaign to prevent ratification of the Treaty of Versailles . Mellon attended the 1920 Republican National Convention as a nominal supporter of Pennsylvania Governor William Cameron Sproul (Mellon hoped Senator Philander Knox would win the nomination), but the convention chose Senator Warren G. Harding of Ohio as

21828-727: The aftermath of the Spanish–American War , Mellon and Frick also became major shareholders in the New York Shipbuilding Corporation . In 1902, Mellon reorganized T. Mellon & Sons as the Mellon National Bank, a federally chartered National Bank. Andrew Mellon, Richard Mellon, and Frick drew up a new business arrangement in which the three of them jointly controlled the Union Trust Company, which in turn controlled Mellon National Bank. They also established Union Savings Bank, which accepted deposits by mail, and

22032-427: The agreement had little effect. During the 1920s, the conservative Taft Court issued several holdings that damaged labor unions and allowed federal courts to use injunctions to end strikes. The Supreme Court was also hostile to federal regulations designed to ensure minimal working conditions, and it declared minimum wage laws unconstitutional in the 1923 case of Adkins v. Children's Hospital . In June 1924, after

22236-607: The aid of a Catholic priest from the U.S., Morrow also helped bring an end to the Cristero War , a Catholic revolt against Calles's government. The United States' occupation of Nicaragua and Haiti continued under Coolidge's administration, though Coolidge withdrew American troops from the Dominican Republic in 1924. The U.S. established a domestic constabulary in the Dominican Republic to promote internal order without

22440-752: The appointment of African-Americans to federal positions, and he did not appoint any prominent blacks during his tenure as president. Women suffrage had little effect in the South, where very few black women were allowed to vote. On June 2, 1924, partially in recognition of the thousands of natives who joined the military during WW1, Coolidge signed the Indian Citizenship Act , which granted U.S. citizenship to all Native Americans , while permitting them to retain tribal land and cultural rights. By that time, two-thirds of Native Americans were already citizens, having gained citizenship through marriage, military service, or

22644-458: The average work week. Compared to previous years, Coolidge's tenure saw relatively few strikes, and the only major labor disturbance Coolidge faced was the 1923 anthracite coal strike. Coolidge generally avoided labor issues, leaving the administration's response to unrest in the mines to Hoover. Hoover produced the Jacksonville agreement, a voluntary compact between miners and mining companies, but

22848-644: The basis of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1929 , which was passed months after Coolidge left office. Coolidge has often been criticized for his actions during the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 , the worst natural disaster to hit the Gulf Coast until Hurricane Katrina in 2005. He initially declined the request of six governors to provide federal assistance and visit the site of the flooding. Although he did eventually name Secretary Hoover to

23052-548: The bill. He supported the Curtis-Crisp Act, which would have created a federal board to lend money to farm co-operatives in times of surplus, but the bill floundered in Congress. In February 1927, Congress took up the McNary-Haugen bill again, this time narrowly passing it, and Coolidge vetoed it. In his veto message, Coolidge expressed the belief that the bill would do nothing to help farmers, benefiting only exporters and expanding

23256-628: The borders established by the Treaty of Versailles and pledged not to attack each other. Germany also agreed to arbitrate its eastern boundaries with the states created in the Treaty of Versailles. Coolidge's primary foreign policy initiative was the Kellogg–Briand Pact of 1928, named for Secretary of State Kellogg and French foreign minister Aristide Briand . Nearly all major countries signed it. The treaty, ratified in 1929, committed signatories to "renounce war, as an instrument of national policy in their relations with one another." The treaty did not achieve

23460-649: The businesses he ran were still fairly small in the 1890s; T. Mellon & Sons employed seven individuals in 1895. In 1889, Mellon agreed to loan $ 25,000 to the Pittsburgh Reduction Company, a fledgling operation seeking to become the first successful industrial producer of aluminum. Mellon became a director of the company in 1891, and he and Richard played a major role in the establishment of aluminum factories in New Kensington, Pennsylvania , and Niagara Falls, New York . The company would emerge as one of

23664-601: The cancellation of European debts from World War I but recognized that Britain and other countries would be unable to pay those debts without a renegotiation of terms. In 1923, Mellon and British Chancellor of the Exchequer Stanley Baldwin negotiated an agreement in which Britain promised to pay off the debts over a 62-year period. After the adoption of the Dawes Plan , Mellon reached debt settlements with several other European countries. After protracted negotiations,

23868-467: The club bore no legal responsibility for the flood. Mellon did not publicly comment on the flood, though he did donate $ 1,000 to a relief fund. By the late 1890s, Mellon had amassed a substantial fortune, but his wealth paled in comparison to that of better-known business leaders such as John D. Rockefeller . In the late 1890s, the Union Trust Company emerged for the first time as one of Mellon's most important and profitable holdings after Mellon broadened

24072-415: The coal production of the United States. With Frick, Richard Mellon, and William Donner , Mellon co-founded Union Steel Company, which specialized in the production of nails and barbed wire . Though Frick had fallen out with steel magnate and long-time business partner Andrew Carnegie , Mellon received Carnegie's consent to venture into the steel industry. Responding to the growing emphasis on naval power in

24276-455: The coalition of Democrats and progressive Republicans that exercised effective control over the 68th Congress . In February 1924, the House Ways and Means Committee approved of a bill based on Mellon's plan, but an alliance of progressive Republicans and Democrats engineered passage of an alternative tax bill written by Democrat John Nance Garner ; Garner's plan also reduced income taxes but set

24480-504: The company from going into bankruptcy. By the end of 1913, Mellon National Bank held more money in deposits than any other bank in Pittsburgh, and the Farmer's Deposit National Bank, which held the second-largest amount of deposits, was controlled by Mellon's Union Trust Company. In 1914, Mellon became a co-owner of Koppers , which produced a more sophisticated coking oven than the one that had earlier been pioneered by Frick. He also served as

24684-573: The company to secure a medicinal permit during Prohibition. This permit allowed Overholt to sell existing whiskey stocks to druggists for medicinal use. When Frick died in December 1919, he left his share to Mellon. In 1925, under pressure from prohibitionists, Mellon sold his share of the company to a New York grocer. Like his father, Mellon consistently supported the Republican Party, and he frequently donated to state and local party leaders. Through state party boss Matthew Quay , Mellon influenced legislators to place high tariffs on aluminum products in

24888-505: The company's activities to include commercial banking. With an infusion of capital from Union Trust, Mellon underwrote the capitalization of National Glass and several other companies. He also became a co-owner of the McClintic-Marshall Construction Company and established Crucible Steel Company, the Pittsburgh Coal Company , and the Monongahela River Coal Company ; the two coal companies collectively contributed 11 percent of

25092-460: The cost. Congress, meanwhile, favored a bill that would place the federal government completely in charge of flood mitigation. When Congress passed a compromise measure in 1928, Coolidge declined to take credit for it and signed the Flood Control Act of 1928 in private on May 15. Union membership declined during the 1920s, partly because of consistently rising wages and the declining length of

25296-491: The couple married in 1900. Nora gave birth to a daughter, Ailsa , in 1901. Nora disliked living in Pittsburgh, and she was unhappy in her marriage. By the end of 1903, she had begun an affair with Alfred George Curphey, who would also later be involved with the wife of George Vivian, 4th Baron Vivian . Mellon and Nora eventually reconciled, and in 1907 she gave birth to a son, Paul . The reconciliation proved short-lived, as Nora took up with Curphey again in 1908 and requested

25500-403: The creation of that position in 1946. During the mid 20th century, the position became known as the "appointments secretary", the person who was the guardian of the president's time. He had the responsibility of acting as "gatekeeper" and decided who got to meet with him. The modern-day position of the president's secretary is fulfilled by a administrative assistant or personal assistant in

25704-449: The economy went into a deep slump, as gross national product declined dramatically, and numerous workers lost their jobs. While numerous banks failed, Democrats won control of Congress in the 1930 mid-term elections . As the economy declined, so did Mellon's popularity, which was further damaged by his opposition to another bonus bill for veterans. In mid-1931, the country entered a deep depression, and, at Hoover's request, Mellon negotiated

25908-582: The establishment of the National Portrait Gallery , which also hosts several paintings donated by Mellon. Mellon was initiated to the Scottish Rite Freemasonry, till he raised the 33rd and highest degree. The Andrew W. Mellon Memorial Fountain in Washington was created by Sidney Waugh and was dedicated in May 1952 by Harry S. Truman . Washington, D.C., also hosts the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium and

26112-471: The farmers, liquidate real estate. Purge the rottenness out of the system. High costs of living and high living will come down. ... enterprising people will pick up the wrecks from less competent people." Facing a large deficit, Mellon and Mills called for a return to the tax rates set by the Revenue Act of 1924 and also sought new taxes on automobiles, gasoline, and other items. Congress responded by passing

26316-403: The federal bureaucracy. Congress did not override the veto, but it passed the bill again in May 1928 by an increased majority; again, Coolidge vetoed it. "Farmers never have made much money," said Coolidge, adding, "I do not believe we can do much about it." Secretary Jardine developed his own plan to address the farm crisis that established a Federal Farm Board , and his plan eventually would form

26520-593: The federal government would pay for the institution's upkeep. He conditioned the offer on the establishment of a board of trustees, a majority of whom would be chosen by Mellon. Despite the ongoing tax case against Mellon, the Roosevelt administration accepted the offer, and Congress passed legislation authorizing the construction of the National Gallery of Art on Mellon's terms. The National Gallery of Art opened in 1941 and continues to operate. Mellon's friend and former employee, David E. Finley Jr. , would later preside over

26724-404: The federal government, the illegal production of alcoholic beverages flourished. Leaders of organized crime like Arnold Rothstein and Al Capone arranged for the importation of alcohol from Canada and other locations, and the profitability of bootlegging contributed to the rising influence of organized crime. Nonetheless, alcohol consumption fell dramatically during the 1920s, in part due to

26928-508: The guilt of Harding's appointees. Despite congressional pressure, he refused to dismiss Denby, who instead resigned of his own accord in March 1924. That same month, after Daugherty refused to resign, Coolidge fired him. Coolidge also replaced the Director of the Bureau of Investigation , William J. Burns , with J. Edgar Hoover . The investigation by Pomerene and Roberts, combined with the departure of

27132-580: The head of the Mellon financial empire. Emulating his father, Mellon eschewed philanthropy for much of his life, but in the early 1900s, he began donating to local organizations such as the YMCA . Mellon committed to his first large-scale act of philanthropy in 1913, when he and his brother, Richard, established the Mellon Institute of Industrial Research as a department of the University of Pittsburgh. In 1967,

27336-425: The high price of alcoholic drinks. The ratification of the 19th amendment in August 1920 gave women the right to vote in every state in time for the 1920 elections. Politicians responded to the greatly enlarged electorate by emphasizing issues of special interest to women, especially prohibition, child health, public schools, and world peace. Women did respond to these issues, but in terms of general voting they had

27540-547: The history of the world, have so many people enjoyed such a high degree of prosperity or maintained a standard of living comparable to that which prevails throughout this country today." Responsibility for foreign relations lay with the State Department rather than the Treasury Department, and Benjamin Strong Jr. and other central bankers took the lead with regard to international monetary policy, but Mellon nonetheless exercised some influence in foreign affairs. He strongly opposed

27744-480: The idea of asset liquidation to balance budgets, even if it meant shutting down entire industries. By mid-1930, many, including Mellon, believed that the economy had already experienced the worst effects of the stock market crash. He did not object to the Smoot–Hawley Tariff Act , which raised tariff rates to one of the highest levels in U.S. history. Despite the optimism of Hoover and Mellon, in late 1930

27948-492: The ideas of George Peek , whose proposals to raise farm prices inspired the McNary–Haugen Farm Relief Bill . McNary–Haugen proposed the establishment of a federal farm board that would purchase surplus production in high-yield years and hold it for later sale or sell it abroad. The government would lose money in selling the crops abroad, but would recoup some of that loss through fees on farmers who benefited from

28152-449: The immediate ending of wars—but it did provide the founding principle for international law after World War II . Coolidge's policy of international disarmament allowed the administration to decrease military spending, a part of Coolidge's broader policy of decreasing government spending. Coolidge also favored an extension of the Washington Naval Treaty to cover cruisers , but the U.S., Britain, and Japan were unable to come to an agreement at

28356-507: The immigrant population from a given country living in the United States in 1890. As the Immigration Act of 1924 remained in force until the passage of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 , it greatly affected the demographics of immigration for several decades. Perhaps the most contentious issue of Coolidge's presidency was relief for farmers, whose incomes had collapsed after World War I. Many farmers were unable to sell their crops, in

28560-627: The institute merged with the Carnegie Institute of Technology to form Carnegie Mellon University . Mellon also served as an alumni president and trustee of the University of Pittsburgh, and made several major donations to the school, including the land on which the Cathedral of Learning and Heinz Chapel were constructed. In total it is estimated that Mellon donated over $ 43 million to the University of Pittsburgh. Encouraged by Frick and guided by Charles Carstairs , Mellon began collecting art in

28764-466: The land allotments that had earlier taken place. The act was unclear on whether the federal government or the tribal leaders retained tribal sovereignty. Coolidge also appointed the Committee of One Hundred, a reform panel to examine federal institutions and programs dealing with Indian nations. This committee recommended that the government conduct an in-depth investigation into reservation life, resulting in

28968-477: The larger banks that was designed to assist failing institutions. As the National Credit Association proved to be ineffective at stemming the tide of bank failures, Congress and the Hoover administration established the Reconstruction Finance Corporation to provide federal loans to banks. With the unemployment rate approaching twenty percent, Mellon became one of the most "loathed leaders" in

29172-544: The last two presidential elections, and still facing bitter divisions between the Southern and Northeastern wings of the party, few Democrats believed their party would win the 1928 presidential election. By the time of the 1928 Democratic National Convention , Al Smith had emerged as the prohibitive favorite for the presidential nomination. Like Hoover, Smith was nominated on the first ballot of his party's national convention. Smith's policies differed little from those of Hoover, and

29376-417: The major decisions of the Mellon business empire during his time in public service, and he occasionally lobbied congressmen on behalf of his businesses. His fortune continued to grow, and at one point in the 1920s he paid more in federal income tax than any other individual save John Rockefeller and Henry Ford . As Treasury Secretary, Mellon focused on balancing the budget and paying off World War I debts in

29580-486: The media. Nora went so far to contest the divorce that she made an appeal to King George of England and parliament. In 1912, Mellon and Nora finally agreed on a divorce settlement, largely on Mellon's terms. Mellon did not remarry. Nora lived in Pittsburgh for several years before eventually settling in the Hudson Valley , and the two children alternated living with either parent. In 1923, Nora married Harvey Arthur Lee,

29784-467: The mid-to-late 1890s. Over the ensuing decades, his art collection continued to grow as he purchased pieces from Knoedler and Joseph Duveen , and during the 1920s his collection was generally considered to be one of the finest art collections in Washington. In the early 1930s, he purchased, according to Cannadine, just under half of the "greatest paintings" from the Soviet Union 's Hermitage Museum in

29988-479: The midst of the Depression of 1920–21 ; he was largely unconcerned with international affairs and economic matters such as the unemployment rate. To Mellon's chagrin, his department was charged with enforcing Prohibition; he did not believe in teetotaling himself and viewed the law as unenforceable. Aside from balancing the budget, Mellon's top priority was an overhaul of the federal tax code. The income tax had become

30192-438: The modern White House Office . The Secretary would act as a buffer between the president and the public, keeping the president's schedules and appointments, managing his correspondence, managing the staff, communicating to the press as well as being a close aide and advisor to the president in a manner that often required great skill and discretion. In terms of rank it was a precursor to the modern White House Chief of Staff until

30396-669: The most profitable ventures invested in by the Mellons, and in 1907 it was renamed Alcoa . Moving into the petroleum industry, the Mellon family also established the Crescent Oil Company, the Crescent Pipeline Company, and the Bear Creek refinery. By 1894, the Mellon family's vertically integrated companies produced ten percent of the oil exported by the United States. Partly due to the difficult economic conditions caused by

30600-682: The nation plunged into the Great Depression . Many linked the nation's economic collapse to Coolidge's policy decisions, which did nothing to discourage the wild speculation that was going on and rendered so many vulnerable to economic ruin. Though his reputation underwent a renaissance during the Ronald Reagan administration, modern assessments of Coolidge's presidency are divided. He is adulated among advocates of smaller government and laissez-faire ; supporters of an active central government generally view him less favorably, while both sides praise his support of racial equality. Coolidge, who served as

30804-454: The nation's capital had witnessed" since before World War I, Ailsa married David K. E. Bruce , son of Democratic Senator William Cabell Bruce of Maryland. After attending Yale University and the University of Cambridge , Paul briefly worked at Mellon National Bank. He later settled in Virginia, becoming a well-known philanthropist. Mellon's nephew, Richard King Mellon , succeeded Andrew as

31008-508: The necessity for further tax cuts. William Allen White , a contemporary journalist, stated that "so completely did Andrew Mellon dominate the White House in the days when the Coolidge administration was at its zenith that it would be fair to call the administration the reign of Coolidge and Mellon." Coolidge, Mellon, business organizations, and administration allies conducted a publicity campaign designed to convince wavering congressmen to support Mellon's tax plan. Their efforts were opposed by

31212-684: The need for U.S. intervention, but the constabulary's leader, Rafael Trujillo , eventually seized power. Coolidge led the U.S. delegation to the Sixth International Conference of American States , January 15–17, 1928, in Havana , Cuba . This was the only international trip Coolidge made during his presidency. There, he extended an olive branch to Latin American leaders embittered over America's interventionist policies in Central America and

31416-414: The number of immigrants accepted into the country. In the years after the passage of the Emergency Quota Act, members of Congress debated the substance of a permanent immigration bill. Most leaders of both parties favored a permanent bill that would greatly restrict immigration, with the major exception being Al Smith and other urban Democrats. Business leaders had previously favored unlimited immigration to

31620-481: The ongoing farm crisis. They hoped to throw the election to the House by denying the Republican ticket an electoral vote majority, and some Progressives hoped to permanently disrupt the two-party system. On the other hand, many believed that the split in the Republican party, like the one in 1912, would allow a Democrat to win the presidency. After the conventions and the death of his younger son Calvin, Coolidge became withdrawn; he later said that "when he [the son] died,

31824-405: The onset of the Panic of 1893 , in 1895 the Mellons sold their oil interests to Standard Oil . At roughly the same time they were selling their oil concerns, Andrew and Richard invested in the Carborundum Company, a producer of silicon carbide . The brothers gained majority ownership of the Carborundum Company in 1898 and replaced the company's founder and president, Edward Goodrich Acheson , with

32028-406: The opinion of many who favored immigration restriction, stating "immigration should be completely stopped for at least one generation until we can assimilate and Americanize the millions who are in our midst." Prior to Coolidge's presidency, Congress had passed the Immigration Act of 1917 , which imposed a literacy test on immigrants, and the Emergency Quota Act of 1921, which put a temporary cap on

32232-430: The partisan responsibility of the issue had been muddled. Coolidge and Dawes won every state outside the South except Wisconsin, La Follette's home state. Coolidge won 54 percent of the popular vote, while Davis took just 28.8 percent and La Follette won 16.6 percent, one of the strongest third-party presidential showings in U.S. history. In the concurrent congressional elections , Republicans increased their majorities in

32436-439: The party's presidential nominee. Mellon strongly approved of the party's conservative platform, and he served as a key fundraiser for Harding during the presidential campaign. Following Harding's victory in the 1920 presidential election, Harding considered various candidates for Secretary of the Treasury, including Frank Lowden , John W. Weeks , Charles Dawes , and, at the urging of Senator Knox, Andrew Mellon. By 1920, Mellon

32640-538: The percentage of households with electricity rose from 16 percent in 1912 to 60 percent in the mid-1920s. The regulatory state under Coolidge was, as one biographer described it, "thin to the point of invisibility." Coolidge believed that promoting the interests of manufacturers was good for society as a whole, and he sought to reduce taxes and regulations on businesses while imposing tariffs to protect those interests against foreign competition. Coolidge demonstrated his disdain for regulation by appointing commissioners to

32844-432: The permanent White House Press Secretary and Appointments Secretary, but from 1933 to 1939, as he greatly expanded the scope of the federal government's policies and powers in response to the Great Depression, Roosevelt relied on his " Brain Trust " of top advisers. Although working directly for the president, they were often appointed to vacant positions in agencies and departments, from whence they drew their salaries since

33048-439: The position of United States ambassador to the United Kingdom . Mellon returned to private life after Hoover's defeat in the 1932 presidential election by Franklin D. Roosevelt . Beginning in 1933, the federal government launched a tax fraud investigation on Mellon, leading to a high-profile case that ended with Mellon's estate paying significant sums to settle the matter. Shortly before his death, in 1937, Mellon helped establish

33252-437: The position of ambassador to the United Kingdom . Mellon accepted the post, and Mills replaced his former boss as Secretary of the Treasury. Mellon arrived in Britain in April 1932, receiving a friendly reception from a country he had often visited over the previous thirty years. From his post, he watched the collapse of the international economic order, including the debt accords that he had helped negotiate. He also convinced

33456-519: The position of Secretary of Agriculture and John G. Sargent becoming Attorney General. Coolidge appointed Sargent only after the Senate rejected his first choice, Charles B. Warren , who was the first Cabinet nominee to be rejected by the Senate since 1868. Coolidge did not have a vice president during his first term, but Charles Dawes became vice president at the start of Coolidge's second term. Dawes and Coolidge clashed over farm policy and other issues. Coolidge appointed only Harlan Fiske Stone to

33660-424: The position, but he took a leave of absence before Eisenhower's inauguration and later withdrew without ever having served. In 1946, in response to the rapid growth of the U.S. government's executive branch , the position of Assistant to the President of the United States was established, and charged with the affairs of the White House. Together with the Appointments Secretary the two took responsibility of most of

33864-495: The power and glory of the Presidency went with him." It was the most subdued Republican campaign in memory, partly because of Coolidge's grief, but also because of his naturally non-confrontational style. Coolidge relied on advertising executive Bruce Barton to lead his messaging campaign, and Barton's ads depicted Coolidge as a symbol of solidity in an era of speculation. Although the Republicans had been tarred by several scandals, by 1924 several Democrats had also been implicated and

34068-401: The president's affairs and at this point the Secretary to the President was charged with nothing other than managing the president's official correspondence before the office was discontinued at the close of the Truman administration . In 1961, under Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower , the president's pre-eminent assistant was designated the White House Chief of Staff . Assistant to

34272-447: The presidential nominee, and after 103 ballots, the delegates finally agreed on a little-known compromise candidate, John W. Davis , who picked the brother of William Jennings Bryan . The Democrats' hopes were buoyed when Robert LaFollette , a Republican senator from Wisconsin, split from the GOP to form a new Progressive Party . La Follette's Progressives were hostile to the conservatism of both major party candidates, and energized by

34476-416: The press generally referred to it as the "Mellon Plan". The Revenue Act of 1918 had set a top marginal income tax rate of 73% and a corporate tax of approximately 10%. Due in part to the size of the U.S. public debt, which had grown from $ 1 billion before the war to $ 24 billion in 1921, the provisions of the Revenue Act of 1918 remained in place when Harding took office. In 1921, the Treasury Department and

34680-405: The program. Proponents of the bill argued that the program was little different from protective tariffs, which they argued were used to disproportionately benefit industrial concerns. Coolidge opposed McNary-Haugen, declaring that agriculture must stand "on an independent business basis," and said that "government control cannot be divorced from political control." The first and second incarnations of

34884-450: The prohibition of alcoholic beverages in the United States, and the Volstead Act had established penalties for violating the amendment. Coolidge personally opposed Prohibition, but sought to enforce federal law and refrained from serving liquor in the White House. Though Congress had established the Bureau of Prohibition to enforce the Volstead Act, federal enforcement of Prohibition was lax. As most states left enforcement of Prohibition to

35088-521: The prosperity of the Roaring Twenties , Mellon emerged as one of the most renowned figures in the Harding administration. One admiring congressman referred to Mellon as the "greatest Secretary of the Treasury since Alexander Hamilton ". Harding died after suffering a stroke in August 1923, and he was succeeded by Vice President Calvin Coolidge . Mellon enjoyed closer relations with President Coolidge than he had with President Harding, and Coolidge and Mellon shared similar views on most major issues, including

35292-439: The quotas, particularly the total ban on Japanese immigration, which violated the Gentlemen's Agreement of 1907 with Japan. Despite his own reservations, Coolidge chose to sign the restrictive Immigration Act of 1924 . The Emergency Quota Act had limited annual immigration from any given country to 3% of the immigrant population from that country living in the United States in 1920; the Immigration Act of 1924 changed this to 2% of

35496-408: The relationship after learning that she was suffering from tuberculosis . After this experience, Mellon refrained from courting women for several years. In 1898, while traveling with Frick and Frick's wife to Europe, Mellon met Nora McMullen, a nineteen-year-old Englishwoman of Ulster Scots ancestry. Mellon visited McMullen's home of Hertford Castle in 1898 and 1899, and, after a period of courtship,

35700-624: The responsibilities of state and local governments." Historian David Greenberg argues that Coolidge's economic policies, designed primarily to bolster American industry, are best described as Hamiltonian rather than laissez-faire. Coolidge took office in the aftermath of World War I , during which the United States had raised taxes to unprecedented rates. Coolidge's taxation policy was largely set by Treasury Secretary Mellon, who held that "scientific taxation"—lower taxes—would actually increase rather than decrease government receipts. The Revenue Act of 1921 , which had been proposed by Mellon, had reduced

35904-422: The retention of a progressive income tax that would serve as an important, but not primary, source of revenue for the federal government. His so-called "scientific taxation" was designed to maximize federal revenue while minimizing the impact on business and industry. The central tenet of Mellon's tax plan was a reduction of the surtax, a progressive tax that affected only high-income earners. Mellon argued that such

36108-561: The retirement of about one-fourth of the federal debt. Coolidge would be the last president to significantly reduce the total amount of federal debt until Bill Clinton 's tenure in the 1990s, although intervening presidents would preside over a reduction of debt in proportion to the country's gross domestic product. A strong nativist movement had arisen in the years prior to Coolidge's presidency, with hostility focused on immigrants from Eastern Europe, Southeastern Europe, and East Asia . A constituent writing to Senator William Borah reflected

36312-447: The right to set import duties on American goods. The nation initially did not know what to make of Coolidge, who had maintained a low profile in the Harding administration; many even expected him to be replaced on the ballot in the 1924 presidential election . The 1923 United Mine Workers coal strike presented an immediate challenge to Coolidge, who avoided becoming closely involved in the strike. Pennsylvania Governor Gifford Pinchot ,

36516-413: The salaries of their private secretaries out of their own pockets; these roles were usually fulfilled by their relatives, most often their sons or nephews. James K. Polk notably had his wife take the role. It was during Buchanan's term at the White House in 1857 that the United States Congress created a definite office named the "Private Secretary at the White House" and appropriated for its incumbent

36720-405: The same outlook and the same voting behavior as men. Thus by 1928, they realized that special appeals had little effect and there was less special attention. Coolidge spoke in favor of the civil rights of African Americans , saying in his first State of the Union address that their rights were "just as sacred as those of any other citizen" under the U.S. Constitution and that it was a "public and

36924-411: The scandal-tarred Harding appointees, served to disassociate Coolidge from the Harding administration's misdeeds. By May 1924, Harding's scandals had largely receded from public attention, though a separate scandal involving former Postmaster General Will H. Hays would briefly garner headlines in 1928. During Coolidge's presidency, the United States experienced a period of rapid economic growth known as

37128-400: The service of our country, it is hazardous to attempt what we feel is beyond our strength to accomplish." With Coolidge's retirement, speculation on the 1928 Republican presidential nominee focused on Senator Charles Curtis, Senator William Borah, former Governor Frank Lowden, Vice President Dawes, former Secretary of State Hughes, and, especially, Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover. Coolidge

37332-415: The soldiers had been paid poorly during the war. Coolidge and Mellon preferred to use the budget surplus to cut taxes, and they did not believe that the country could pass the Bonus Bill, cut taxes, and maintain a balanced budget. However, the Bonus Bill gained wide support and was endorsed by several prominent Republicans, including Henry Cabot Lodge and Charles Curtis . Congress overrode Coolidge's veto of

37536-457: The staff adding two additional private secretaries (at a salary of $ 10,000 each – increased from $ 7,200 ) added by Congress. The first Hoover designated his Legislative Secretary (the senior Secretary now informally referred to by the press as the president's "No.1 Secretary" ), the second his Confidential Secretary, and the third his Appointments and Press Secretary . In 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt converted Hoover's two extra secretaries into

37740-445: The state Republican Party. Numerous financial institutions failed in the months prior to Roosevelt's inauguration, but Mellon National Bank, the Union Trust Company, and another Mellon banking operation, Mellbank Corporation, were all able to avoid closure. Mellon strongly opposed Roosevelt's New Deal policies, especially the 1933 Banking Act , which required separation between commercial and investment banking. Mellon believed that

37944-558: The tax acts also increased the amount of income exempt from taxation , and by 1928 only 2 percent of taxpayers paid any federal income tax. By 1930, one-third of federal revenue came from income taxes, one-third from corporate taxes, and most of the remaining third came from the tariff and excise taxes on tobacco. Coolidge inherited a budget surplus of $ 700 million, but also a federal debt of $ 22.3 billion, with most of that debt having been accumulated in World War I. Federal spending remained flat during Coolidge's administration, contributing to

38148-417: The threats to galvanize opposition to Japanese immigration. The immigration legislation sparked a major backlash in Japan, strengthening the position of those in Japan who favored expansionism over cooperation with Western powers. The Coolidge administration at first avoided engagement with the Republic of China , which was led by Sun Yat-sen and his successor, Chiang Kai-shek . The administration protested

38352-428: The ticket, but Borah refused to relinquish his Senate seat. Republicans then nominated Lowden for vice president on the second ballot, but he also declined. Finally diplomat and banker Charles G. Dawes was nominated on the third ballot. The Democrats held their convention the next month in New York City. Wilson's Treasury Secretary William Gibbs McAdoo had been regarded by many as the front-runner, but his candidacy

38556-489: The time of its peak the Secretary to the President was a much admired government office held by men of high ability and considered as worthy as a cabinet rank; it even merited an oath of office. Three private secretaries were later appointed to the Cabinet: George B. Cortelyou , John Hay and Daniel S. Lamont . Under Warren G. Harding , the size of the staff expanded to thirty-one, although most were clerical positions. During Herbert Hoover 's presidency however, he tripled

38760-455: The top marginal tax rate at 46% rather than Mellon's preferred 33%. In June 1924, Coolidge signed the Revenue Act of 1924 , which contained the income tax rates of Garner's bill and also increased the estate tax . Coolidge signed the bill but simultaneously called for further tax cuts. Congress also rejected Mellon's proposed constitutional amendment that would have barred the issuance of tax-exempt securities and, over Coolidge's veto, authorized

38964-454: The top marginal tax rate from 58 percent to 46 percent, but increased the estate tax and bolstered it with a new gift tax . After his re-election in 1924, Coolidge sought further tax reductions, and Congress cut taxes with the Revenue Acts of 1926 and 1928 . Congress abolished the gift tax in 1926, but Mellon was unable to win repeal of the estate tax , which had been established by the Revenue Act of 1916 . In addition to cutting top rates,

39168-438: The top marginal tax rate from 71 percent to 58 percent, and Mellon sought to further reduce rates and abolish other taxes during Coolidge's presidency. Coolidge spent early 1924 opposing the World War Adjusted Compensation Act or "Bonus Bill," which he believed would be a fiscally irresponsible expenditure. With a budget surplus, many legislators wanted to reward the veterans of World War I with extra compensation, arguing that

39372-412: The various New Deal policies, including Social Security and unemployment insurance , undermined the free market system that had produced one of the largest economies in the world. Aside from banking reform, other New Deal policies, including regulations on utilities and coal mines and laws designed to promote labor unions, also affected Mellon's business empire. Additionally, the Revenue Act of 1934 and

39576-604: Was a major political issue throughout the 1920s as farmers remained a powerful voting bloc despite the rising tide of urbanization. Secretary of Agriculture Henry Cantwell Wallace floated the possibility of restricting the number of acres that each farmer would be allowed to farm, but the unpopularity of this proposal among farmers made it politically infeasible. After the 1924 elections, the Coolidge administration introduced an agricultural plan that emphasized agricultural cooperatives to help control prices, but it found little favor among farmers. The farm bloc instead coalesced behind

39780-422: Was a strong proponent of cooperation between government and business, and he organized numerous conferences of intellectuals and businessmen which made various recommendations. Relatively few reforms were passed, but the proposals created the image of an active administration. Between 1923 and 1929, the number of families with radios grew from 300,000 (or approximately 1 percent) to 10 million, which grew further to

39984-475: Was an American banker, businessman, industrialist, philanthropist, art collector, and politician. The son of Mellon family patriarch Thomas Mellon , he established a vast business empire before moving into politics. He served as United States Secretary of the Treasury from March 9, 1921, to February 12, 1932, presiding over the boom years of the 1920s and the Wall Street Crash of 1929 . A conservative Republican , Mellon favored policies that reduced taxation and

40188-453: Was challenged by William Scott Vare of Philadelphia and progressive leader Gifford Pinchot , who won the 1922 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election. Nonetheless, Mellon would continue to exert an important influence on Pennsylvania politics throughout the 1920s, especially in senatorial elections and in Allegheny County. Mellon's influence over state politics waned in the early 1930s, as the progressive allies of Governor Pinchot took control of

40392-455: Was damaged by his connection to the Teapot Dome Scandal. Nonetheless, he entered the convention as one of the two strongest candidates, alongside Governor Al Smith of New York. Smith and McAdoo epitomized the divide in the Democratic Party; Smith drew support from Northeastern cities, with their large ethnic populations of Catholics and Jews. McAdoo's base was in the Protestant strongholds of the rural South and West. The convention deadlocked over

40596-411: Was displeased by the bill. He also strongly disapproved of a "Bonus Bill" passed by Congress that would provide for additional compensation to veterans of World War I, partly because he feared it would interfere with his plans to reduce debt and taxes. With Mellon's support, Harding vetoed the bill, and Congress failed to override the veto. As the economy recovered from recession and began to experience

40800-430: Was given power of attorney to direct the operations of the bank. That same year, Thomas introduced his son to Henry Clay Frick , a customer of the bank who would become one of Mellons's closest friends. In 1882, Thomas turned over full ownership of the bank to his son, but Thomas continued to be involved in the bank's activities. Five years later, Mellon's younger brother, Richard B. Mellon , joined T. Mellon & Sons as

41004-497: Was little-known outside of banking circles, but his potential appointment to the cabinet received strong support from bankers and Pennsylvania Republican leaders like Knox, Senator Boies Penrose , and Governor Sproul. Mellon was reluctant to enter public life due to concerns about privacy and a belief that his ownership of various businesses, including Old Overholt distillery, would be a political liability. But Mellon also wanted to retire from active participation in business, and he saw

41208-443: Was regarded as one of the court's three liberal justices who would often vote to uphold New Deal legislation. Coolidge nominated 17 judges to the United States Courts of Appeals , and 61 judges to the United States district courts . He appointed Genevieve R. Cline to the United States Customs Court , making Cline the first woman to serve in the federal judiciary. Coolidge also signed the Judiciary Act of 1925 into law, allowing

41412-423: Was reluctant to endorse Hoover as his successor; on one occasion he remarked that "for six years that man has given me unsolicited advice—all of it bad." Hoover also faced opposition from Mellon and other conservatives due to Hoover's progressive stance on some issues. Nonetheless, Hoover's standing at the head of the party was solidified by his handling of the Great Mississippi Flood, and he faced little opposition at

41616-404: Was too old to seek the presidency. Mellon attempted to convince Coolidge or Charles Evans Hughes to run, but neither heeded his appeals. In the months before the 1928 Republican Convention, Mellon maintained his neutrality in the presidential race, but with no compelling alternative Republican candidate willing to run, Mellon finally threw his support behind Hoover. With Mellon's backing, Hoover won

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