One word from the speech hung in the air: “normalcy.” By normalcy, Harding did not mean that people should all be normal. He meant that the environment should be normal and relatively predictable. The old progressive swings in policy disrupted too much. A currency that changed value was a problem. Extreme Red-baiting was wrong; now that the war was over, it was time for compassion. Harding had taken a sentiment felt by everyone—that there had been too much upheaval—and broadened it into a plan. Sometimes the country felt normal now; but if it could get all the way back to normalcy then
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