Interview with Amity Shlaes

07/10/23 • 30 min

The next time you enjoy a leisurely Saturday, thank President Calvin Coolidge. The transition from a six-day work week to a five-day work week occurred under Coolidge’s presidency, an interesting footnote in American history. More importantly though, is why that came to be. Coolidge believed that smaller government and lower taxes would unleash American industry, creating more efficiency and greater productivity. Turns out, he was right.

Amity Shlaes is our guest on this episode of Voices of Freedom. She has made it her mission to elevate Silent Cal’s presidency to enhance an understanding of why prosperity and civility flourished under his steady leadership. Shlaes chairs the board of the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation, the official foundation dedicated to preserving and promoting the legacy of America’s 30th president.

Topics discussed by Amity Shlaes and Rick Graber, President and CEO of The Bradley Foundation, include:

· Why President Coolidge should be ranked among America’s top ten presidents

· This year’s centennial celebration of Coolidge’s inauguration

· Coolidge isn’t taught in America’s classrooms - but he should be

· Coolidge’s most important domestic policies

· How Coolidge’s humble upbringing shaped his character and beliefs

· The story behind the opponents of the New Deal and the nature of successful rebellion

· Government growth during a crisis and cancel culture’s presence in the New Deal era

· The rising support for unions among the right

· How to inspire inquiry among younger generations

Shlaes is the author of four New York Times bestsellers, including The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression. Her latest book, New Deal Rebels, looks at the story of American opposition to the New Deal. Shlaes was a syndicated columnist for ten years, first at the Financial Times, then Bloomberg. Before that, she served as an editorial board member of The Wall Street Journal. Shlaes is also a winner of a 2021 Bradley Prize.

Topics discussed by Amity Shlaes and Rick Graber, President and CEO of The Bradley Foundation, include:

· Why President Coolidge should be ranked among America’s top ten presidents

· This year’s centennial celebration of Coolidge’s inauguration

· Coolidge isn’t taught in America’s classrooms - but he should be

· Coolidge’s most important domestic policies

· How Coolidge’s humble upbringing shaped his character and beliefs

· The story behind the opponents of the New Deal and the nature of successful rebellion

· Government growth during a crisis and cancel culture’s presence in the New Deal era

· The rising support for unions among the right

· How to inspire inquiry among younger generations

Previous Episode

Interview with Samuel Gregg

This episode of Voices of Freedom features a thoughtful conversation with Samuel Gregg, Distinguished Fellow in Political Economy and Senior Research Faculty at the American Institute for Economic Research.

Topics discussed by Dr. Gregg and Rick Graber, President and CEO, The Bradley Foundation, include:

The integral role of free enterprise in America’s past, present, and future.
Challenges to free enterprise from the left and the right.
The debate about government intervention to counter China and Big Tech.
Whether tariffs are ever appropriate.
What have proponents of free enterprise missed?
The rise and influence of ESG.

Enjoy this conversation and more, Gregg has written and spoken extensively on questions of political economy, economic history, monetary theory and policy, and natural law theory. He is the author of sixteen books, including his most recent, The Next American Economy: Nation, State and Markets in an Uncertain World (2022). Three of his books have been short-listed for Conservative Book of the Year.

Next Episode

Interview with Dominic Pino

The latest tool to turn the tide against corporations that are active in the culture wars is the power of consumers who are willing to vote with their pocketbooks. Acting on their frustration with companies that “go woke” by boycotting their products, they are damaging some of America’s most iconic brands.

While the pushback has caused some executives to think twice about adopting marketing campaigns that reflect the priorities of progressive identity politics, others continue to forge ahead.

National Review writer Dominic Pino is our guest on this episode of Voices of Freedom. As a frequent contributor to NR’s Capital Matters, Dominic has his finger on the pulse of current economic issues and the state of free enterprise, including corporate boycotts, ESG, and labor unions.

Topics discussed on this episode include:

How to improve reporting on economic matters
Why industrial policy has become attractive among the younger generation
How to advance the case for economic freedom
The fight against Big Labor – how it has evolved and where it stands today
Corporate boycotts and the pushback against ESG
Rediscovering Edmund Burke as a guiding figure for conservatives

Pino is the Thomas L. Rhodes Journalism Fellow at National Review Institute. Previously, he was the William F. Buckley, Jr. Fellow in Political Journalism at National Review. He recently co-authored Edmund Burke and the Perennial Battle, 1789-1797, a compilation of Burke’s best, most accessible writings from 1789 until his death.