Harding, Warren G. (1865–1923)

• Author: Thomas B. Silver
• Pages: 1264

Page 1264

Warren Gamaliel Harding, twenty-ninth President of the United States, served one of the shortest presidential terms, from his inauguration on March 4, 1921, until his death on August 2, 1923. An Ohio newspaperman and politician, and a United States senator (1915?1921), Harding was nominated as a compromise candidate at the deadlocked 1920 Republican party convention and won a landslide victory over his Democratic opponent, James Cox.

Harding's policies flowed from an understanding of the American Constitution very different from that of his predecessor, WOODROW WILSON. His economic policy consisted of tax reduction, economy in government, a higher tariff, and various measures to aid agriculture in its recovery from the postwar depression. His foreign policy consisted of opposition to American participation in the League of Nations (but support for membership in the World Court), reduction of armaments, and refusal to forgive war debts owed to the United States or its citizens.

Harding's presidency was marred by scandals, which were exposed fully only after his death and in which he was not personally implicated. Despite his brief...