The greatest challenge of the current day is to restore the budget discipline and check on government necessary assure U.S. preeminence in the next century. But Americans are at a loss for model of a leader for this endeavor. Ronald Reagan does not quite fit the bill. But there is a model: that of President Coolidge, the thirtieth chief executive, who occupied the White House from the death of President Harding in summer 1923 to 1929. Coolidge is usually derided as "silent cal," a do nothing minor president who kept the White House warm between Roosevelts. But his achievement was stupendous in his simplicity: when he left office the federal budget was lower than he came in. This even as the U.S. economy averaged four percent growth.

In this lecture Amity Shlaes delves into material from her forthcoming biography to talk about Coolidge's brand of economic leadership. Next she looks at the reasons why this important president has been obscured, and what from his material might be of use today