106 – Reappraising Herbert Hoover with George Nash

Historian George Nash returns to the show to discuss the life and legacy of Herbert Hoover.

 

Few American presidents are as decried by voices on both the Left and Right as Herbert Hoover.  His name has become synonymous with economic suffering and callous Federal response.  But Dr. Nash contends that the popular narrative linking Hoover to the catastrophes of the Great Depression do a great injustice to the actual historical account and reduce one of America’s most remarkable men to that of a callous buffoon.  Hoover, in Dr. Nash’s telling, was responsible for saving the lives of more people than anyone else who ever lived.  And that’s just the start of it.  He accomplished so much in his long life of public and private service that, even if he had never been president, he would be well worth studying today.  A greater appreciation for the complexities of the man and the times in which he lived provides the student of conservatism a greater appreciation for the challenges we face today.

 

About George Nash

George H. Nash is the epitome of a gentleman and a scholar.  A graduate from Amherst College who received his Ph.D. in History from Harvard University, Dr. Nash is an authority on the histories of American conservatism and the life of President Herbert Hoover.  Dr. Nash is an independent scholar, historian, and lecturer.  He speaks and writes frequently about the history and present direction of American conservatism, the life of Herbert Hoover, the legacy of Ronald Reagan, the education of the Founding Fathers, and other subjects.  His writings have appeared in the American Spectator, Claremont Review of Books, Intercollegiate Review, Modern Age, National Review, New York Times Book Review, Policy Review, University Bookman, Wall Street Journal, and many other publications.  He has lectured at the Library of Congress; the National Archives; the Herbert Hoover, John F. Kennedy, and Lyndon Johnson presidential libraries; the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum; the Hoover Institution; the Heritage Foundation; the McConnell Center; and at various universities and conferences in the United States and Europe.  Several of his lectures have been featured on C-SPAN.  He has also been interviewed by C-SPAN, National Public Radio, numerous radio stations, and the print media. Dr. Nash lives in Massachusetts.