OneNewsNow.com column

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Will Rogers is reported to have said that as president, Calvin Coolidge didn't do much of anything -- but at the time, that's precisely what we needed to have done.

Edit that a bit and wonder if a presidential candidate could have a bit less confidence in himself and the Beltway crowd, because for our times, that is what we need for the problems that beset us.

Many remembrances of the man have been made public at the recent passing of the great writer William F. Buckley. Among many debating episodes, many recall fondly his encounters with Gore Vidal -- a left/right verbal fisticuffs of the sort that has now become quite common in the media.

A month before the 1968 presidential election, each took a turn to describe the kind of man he would like to see elected. Buckley, eloquent as ever, remarked:

"He shouldn't form too high an opinion of himself. For instance, he should recognize that America is a great deal that has nothing to do with the presidency -- millions of men, women and children who deserve the opportunity to dream their dreams without any reference at all to the man who occupies the White House.

The best-run country in the world is Switzerland. And I have often amused myself while there by asking casually what is the name of the president of Switzerland. Inevitably, there is an embarrassed silence -- no one can remember his name."

Think of it -- a president committed to being forgotten. A person willing to set America free from what Ronald Reagan called "that little intellectual elite" in Washington -- set free to prosper, operate largely independent of intrusive government with the opportunity to live purposeful lives ... and not forced to think themselves fitfully yoked to an egomaniac in search of a legacy in future history books.