Herbert Hoover's personal copy of "On our way" by Franklin D. Roosevelt By Thomas F. Schwartz It is now commonplace for incoming presidential administrations to release books outlining their new vision. Because they are written for political partisans, the writings are celebrated or mocked according to one’s political bent. Lewis Strauss forwarded Herbert Hoover an … Continue reading Reviews of New Deal books
William F. Buckley, Jr., Oct. 27, 1960. Photo 31-1960-c45 By Thomas F. Schwartz Sam Tanenhaus’s new biography of William F. Buckley, Jr. has prompted mixed reviews from conservative commentators who have praised or criticized its treatment of Buckley’s role in reviving conservatives as a political force. Herbert Hoover’s copy of Buckley’s first book, God and … Continue reading William F. Buckley, Jr. and Herbert Hoover
Italian finance minister Guido Jung arrives for conference with President Roosevelt. ACME photo 5/2/1933 By Thomas F. Schwartz Guido Jung is not a name that brings immediate recognition. He is best known as the Italian Minister of Finance from 1932 to 1935 and a vocal supporter of Benito Mussolini. His Italian family were wealthy Orthodox … Continue reading Guido Jung, Italian Minister of Finance, on FDR and Hitler
By Thomas F. Schwartz In Freedom Betrayed: Herbert Hoover’s Secret History of the Second World War and Its Aftermath edited by George H. Nash, Hoover entitles a section “Brainwashing the American People.” He details President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s efforts to counter isolationist/non-interventionist sentiment by suggesting that Hitler was seeking world domination, not simply that of … Continue reading The Germans are Coming, the Germans are Coming
By Thomas F. Schwartz Continued from part 1… As the title suggests, This Is Not Who We Are: America’s Struggle Between Vengeance and Virtue by Zachary Shore examines three episodes of American actions during the WWII period that were motivated by in part by vengeance but eventually turned into more virtuous behavior. The three episodes … Continue reading Germany and the Morgenthau Plan: Part Two
By Thomas F. Schwartz Fighting a war is costly both in human lives and military expenditures. More costly is securing a just peace with defeated enemies. As a previous blog explained, Herbert Hoover failed in his attempts to feed civilian populations in Poland and Finland at the outset of World War II, but not for … Continue reading Germany and the Morgenthau Plan: Part One
By Thomas F. Schwartz Matthew Continetti’s The Right: The Hundred Year War for American Conservatism states that Herbert Hoover was a member of the America First Committee. This mistake has been repeated in other books citing Continetti as the source. The America First Committee was composed of prominent politicians, business, other national figures who opposed … Continue reading Hoover was never a member of the America First Committee
President and Lou Henry Hoover going to their new home in the White House on Inauguration Day, March 4, 1929, in Washington DC. (31-1929-d25) By Thomas F. Schwartz In watching the film “Trading Places” over the holiday season, two things emerged that had previously escaped my notice. The first was a close-up of the paintings … Continue reading “Greed is Good”: Or is it?
By Thomas F. Schwartz Carolyn Wells was born on June 18, 1862, in Rahway, New Jersey. She worked as a librarian after completing her education, accounting for her interest in books and writing. Her marriage to Hadwin Houghton, heir to the publishing house Houghton-Mifflin, provided an additional tie to the book world. Author of 170 books, … Continue reading Mystery Writers Read by the Hoovers: Part V, Carolyn Wells Houghton
By Thomas F. Schwartz Lawrence Saunders (a pseudonym for the married couple John Burton Davis and Clare Ogden Davis, not the Lawrence Saunders of The Anderson Tapes) and Harry Stephen Keeler are relatively unknown today but were rather well-known mystery writers in their day. The Columnist Murder (1931) was dedicated to Walter Winchell, the infamous gossip … Continue reading Mystery Writers Read by the Hoovers: Part IV
