Labor force has much to like this year

LABOR Day, while technically a union-centered holiday, is more broadly observed as a day to celebrate American workers and the economic dynamism of the United States. Past presidents understood that.

Calvin Coolidge presided over one of this country's greatest economic expansions, a time of rapidly rising prosperity that benefited Americans from all economic strata.

In a 1924 speech, Coolidge said, “I cannot think of anything characteristically American that was not produced by toil. I cannot think of any American man or woman pre-eminent in the history of our nation who did not reach their place through toil. I cannot think of anything that represents the American people as a whole so adequately as honest work. We perform different tasks, but the spirit is the same. We are proud of work and ashamed of idleness.”

He added, “The door of opportunity swings wide open in our country. Through it, in constant flow, go those who toil. America recognizes no aristocracy save those who work. The badge of service is the sole requirement for admission to the ranks of our nobility.”

Coolidge understood that government had core functions to perform, but unlike some of his successors in the White House, he also understood that overreaching government creates obstacles that prevent people from reaping the benefit of their honest labor.