Date: March 10, 1925
Location: Washington D.C.
(Original document available here)
I haven’t made any decision yet about the Ambassador to Germany. Have several names under consideration, but there hasn’t been any final decision about any of them.
I don’t know how I can elaborate my views about party responsibility farther than what I outlined in my address the other day. The only thing I didn’t say there was perhaps, which might be stressed some, that it isn’ t any question of disciplining anybody or punishing anybody. You don’t punish anyone for belonging to a separate party – not belonging to ours. I expect that if you have been to the country and asked the country to support certain principles which you hold out to the country that you represent, and the country has elected you to office, the only honorable thing to do is so to organize the administration of that government to which you have been elected as to try to insure the putting into effect of the principles that you told the country you represent. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be the slightest reason when it came to organize the Congress that you should say, if the Republicans have domination there, that the Republicans should have the majority of the committees, or if the Democrats have domination, that the Democrats should have a majority on each committee, or that the chairmanships which are important in influencing the course of committee conduct, should be held by Republicans or Democrats. It seems to me that that is the fundamental determination. Of course it isn’t at all a question of any reward or punishment, simply a question of trying to put into effect what you said you were going to do when you asked the country to elect you to office.
I am not expecting to send further nominations of judges in the Department of Justice to the Senate until I have the advantage of the advice of the new Attorney General. I shall have to hold up the submission of nominations there for judicial positions and so on until the new Attorney General comes in.
We have a good many things under consideration in the foreign service. None of them are determined. If anyone is in office, why it is safe for you to assume that he is going to stay in office until further notice. I can’t tell what changes are going to be made, what men are going to be retained, what men are to be taken out. The Department is going over the entire situation very carefully. Some men have resigned, some resignations are going to be accepted, and some are not. Here is an inquiry about Ambassador Moore. That is a typical case. I understand he is going to return to Spain. How long he is going to stay, I don’t know. What I have said is applicable to this question as to whether I can announce any changes in foreign posts.
I think there are one or two nominations going up today for Central American posts. As it is now 12:00 o’clock, I think very likely the press already has them or perhaps in accordance with the custom I wouldn’t say anything about them. I think the practice exists to give those out when they are sent up.
Here is an inquiry about the Circuit Judges of the 8th District. Perhaps I have already covered that by saying I can’t pass on those questions until I have reports from the Attorney General. I haven’t any particular intention about confining to one party or the other. Generally speaking, I find Republicans if there are Republicans that seem to be qualified, though I have appointed some Democrats to the bench, and expect to continue to appoint Democrats. I don’t regard it as a partisan measure entirely. I don’t want to make the judiciary so much a matter of partisan politics as I might some other appointments, and I expect in the future to do as I have in the past, appoint some Democrats to the bench. So I can’t give you any information about the judges in Minnesota or the 8th Circuit, as I have indicated.
I haven’t heard a word about Judge English. No resignation so far as I know has reached me. I haven’t been able to go through all my papers this morning on account of some appointments that I had in the meeting of the Cabinet, but I know of no resignation. It might be sent directly to me, it might be sent to the Department of Justice. But I don’t have any information about it whatever. So I think I would proceed there, if I haven’t any information that a person has resigned, to consider it that he hasn’t resigned.
I have no further information about Major Haynes, Prohibition Commissioner. He is in office, and you may consider him to stay in office until further notice.
I don’t think any decision has been made about an Assistant Secretary of Agriculture. The name of Mr. Creel, of Nevada, has come to my attention along with a good many names. I have referred them to the Secretary of Agriculture, and he will make up his mind on what he wants to recommend after consultation with me.
I have already said I didn’t decide on an Ambassador to Germany.
I don’t know of any message that I might send to the Senate. Something might come up. I don’t know of anything now other than the usual nomination messages. That seems to cover the inquiries.
Citation: Calvin Coolidge: Remarks by the President to Newspaper CorrespondentsÂ
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