The United States entered into the Kellog-Briand Pact with a number of other countries. The Pact was an agreement to promote peace and eliminate war as a “national policy” for settling international disputes. The Pact failed to provide for a means of enforcing the agreement, however, rendering it useless.
Upon the death of Warren G. Harding, Vice President Calvin Coolidge (1872–1933) ascended to the presidency. Coolidge had come to national attention in 1919, when, as governor of Massachusetts, he broke the Boston police strike after declaring “there is no right to strike against the public interest, anytime, anywhere.” His well-deserved nickname was "Silent Cal.” Some acquaintances wagered whether they could make him say more than two words. His answer: “You lose." At the end of his presidency, he was asked whether...