It is imperative that civic education be strengthened and restored back to the curriculum. A new academic year is approaching and across the nation our education system at all levels is plagued by a crisis in civic education. Students, whether K-12 or higher education, are increasingly ignorant when it comes to even the basic knowledge of American History, Government, and […]
We must defend American institutions and the Constitution against these so-called reforms and tell President Biden, Hands off the Supreme Court. President Joe Biden recently proposed a series of reforms to the United States Supreme Court. The President and Democrats are furious over not only recent decisions rendered, but also by the conservative direction the Court has taken. As a […]
It is our responsibility to make a serious and informed decision while voting and to realize that our vote does count and that voting as well as not voting brings consequences. In 1924, the nation elected President Calvin Coolidge in a landslide. Coolidge had assumed the presidency when President Warren G. Harding had suddenly died in office. Americans were supportive […]
The Republican Party is not breaking up with conservatives. It’s actually starting a reformation back to an older conservative tradition. This week, the Republican Party officially nominated former President Donald Trump and Ohio Senator J.D. Vance for President and Vice President. The Republican National Convention was the most unified and inspirational conventions in recent years. The Trum...
Midwest icon John Deere is the latest company to demonstrate the downside of “free trade” and tax credits. John Deere, established in 1837, is an iconic brand and a symbol of the American heartland. This is especially true in Iowa. John Deere machinery can be seen in fields, yards, and construction sites across the state, and their famous leaping deer […]
The Register poll should be a lesson for policymakers that Iowans understand that inflation is directly caused by government spending. As regular ITR Live listeners and viewers know, our own John Hendrickson has opinions. Most of these opinions cover topics within the ITR Foundation issue set, but some do not. We believe John’s thoughts need to be shared with a […]
Former Federal Reserve Board Chair Ben S. Bernanke wrote that “to understand the Great Depression is the Holy Grail of macroeconomics.”[i] The cause of the Great Depression is not the only source of debate. Debate exists over why the Depression lasted such a long time and how it was eventually resolved. President Herbert Hoover argued that the origins of the Depression […]
Economists Richard Vedder and Lowell Gallaway contend that “the seven years from the autumn of 1922 to the autumn of 1929 were arguably the brightest period in the economic history of the United States.”[i] This decade is often described as the “Roaring Twenties” or “Coolidge Prosperity” for the significant economic growth and entrepreneurship that occurred.
Economic Growth Source: Gross National Product and Real Wages from the Historical Statistics of the United States: Colonial Times to 1970, Bicentennial Edition, United States Bureau of the Census, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1975. Abstract: In the aftermath of the American Civil War the economy expanded as a result of rapid industrialization. Gross National Product and ...
By John Hendrickson This week the nation lost a treasure with the passing of David McCullough. David McCullough was America’s historian and he brought history alive through his many books. McCullough was a gifted storyteller both in his writing and his narration of American Experience documentaries such as Ken Burns, The Civil War. Some of his work included biographies of […]
Recently, C-SPAN released its 2021 Presidential Rankings Survey and President Herbert Hoover was ranked near the bottom. Hoover’s poor ranking is no surprise as he is often viewed as a failure or below average. However, Hoover deserves better. August 10th will mark Herbert Hoover’s 147th birthday. Hoover was born in 1874 in the small quiet village of West Branch, Iowa. […]
Herbert Hoover, who served as the 31st President of the United Sates, was born in 1874 in the small village of West Branch, Iowa. Growing up he was shaped by his Quaker upbringing. Orphaned at a young age he went to live with an Uncle in Oregon and eventually he enrolled at Stanford where he graduated with a degree in […]
John’s personal take on a number of subjects.