Historians assessing the Harding presidency have focused on its scandals to the neglect of its progress on civil liberties and restoration of economic “normalcy,” undoing major intrusions enacted during the Wilson administration. President Harding’s tarnished reputation merits reconsideration in light of his release of political prisoners, restoration of free speech, and prosperity-promoting economic policies.

Gary M. Pecquet is an assistant professor of economics at Central Michigan University.
Clifford F. Thies is the Eldon R. Lindsay Professor of Economics and Finance at Shenandoah University.
Government and PoliticsPolitical History
Other Independent Review articles by Gary M. Pecquet
Spring 2013 The Calculus of Conquests: The Decline and Fall of the Returns to Roman Expansion
Fall 2010 The Shaping of a Future President’s Economic Thought: Richard T. Ely and Woodrow Wilson at “The Hopkins”
Winter 2008/09 Texas Treasury Notes after the Compromise of 1850
[View All (4)]
Other Independent Review articles by Clifford F. Thies
Spring 2023 Unintended Consequences: A Critical Review of Child Support Enforcement
Spring 2023 The Myth of American Inequality
Fall 2014 Repudiation in Antebellum Mississippi
[View All (6)]