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Excerpts of the President's News Conference

March 20, 1928

I saw some headline relative to a proposal that was made by Governor Fisher for a conference for the purpose of trying to arrange some adjustment of the coal industry. If it is true that he is suggesting that representatives of the states and of the operators and of the miners and the National Government should all come together, my offhand opinion would be that such a conference would be so large that any practical and affirmative result would be very doubtful. You will probably recall that the Secretary of Labor, with my approval, called a conference of miners and operators just at the opening of the Congress, which did not result in any affirmative action. Some of the operators did not appear in person, but sent messages. If this was a mere question of wages, something of that kind might hold out more promise of effective success, but it is a question of reorganizing the coal industry. I don't want to indicate that if Governor Fisher wishes to have a conference of that kind that I should in any way oppose it or fail to have representatives of the Labor Department there. Now, it may be that he has something in mind that will be very practical and helpful. He is, of course, quite conversant with the coal industry and the coal situation and any suggestion he made ought to be given very careful consideration. Of course, if he meant to have a small conference, that would remove some of the objections that at present appear to me, but I assume he intends to have representatives from quite a large number of states, and if there are going to be representatives from all the operators, and from those who are engaged as employees, it would make it quite a large gathering. The operators perhaps might send one or two operators, perhaps the employees might send one or two representatives, and in that way keep the conference from being too large.

* * * * * * *

I am sending a message to the Congress relative to the Austrian debt. You may recall that 4 or 5 years ago we extended the time—put on what would be technically known as a moratorium for Austria, which runs into the early 40's. Now, Austria wants to do some financing, and has secured the consent of all the other interested governments of Europe and wishes to secure our consent. That consent is being given by the other governments on condition that agreements are made for funding the present indebtedness of Austria to the other countries. We thought we should go in on the same basis. So that I am asking for legislation that would authorize us to grant the extension that is requested and to accept a funding settlement with Austria that will be as good as that which is given to any of the other countries.

Source: "The Talkative President: The Off-the-Record Press Conferences of Calvin Coolidge". eds. Howard H. Quint & Robert H. Ferrell. The University Massachusetts Press. 1964.

Calvin Coolidge, Excerpts of the President's News Conference Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/349242

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