Essay on Reagan's Changing Views on The Soviet Union

On October 27, 1964 in Los Angeles County, California Ronald Reagan, who was running for president at the time, presented a speech on national television called “A Time For Choosing”, also known as “The Speech”. He presented this speech on behalf of Barry Goldwater and to address current issues like Vietnam, welfare, taxes and the over budget American government. This speech starts the beginning of Reagan's prosperity in politics and is one of the first speeches given by Reagan that will later earn him the title The Great Communicator. Reagan uses persuasive techniques like logos, pathos, and ethos throughout his speech. He uses logos to make what he is speaking about seem logical, pathos to connect to the audience emotionally,

At a time when most of the country was feeling pessimistic about the direction the nation was headed, Ronald Reagan easily won the 1980 presidential election over Jimmy Carter. America needed the type of leadership that a conviction politician could bring in order to remove the disparity and defeatism that was felt during the last years of Carter’s presidency (Sloan, 1996). The effects that Reagan’s national optimism had on the morale of the country were that he was able to bring hope to a nation that was once again struggling economically,

Ronald Reagan’s speech “A Time for Choosing” was a very effective persuasive speech that may not have gotten Barry Goldwater elected as president, but it did have a profound impact on the American people. This speech more than likely led to Ronald Reagan’s interest in politics and election as President of the United States in 1981. He communicated facts that may not have been known to the American community and additionally brought into perspective invalid statements that were said about Barry Goldwater. Reagan easily connected to his audience and was successful in convincing people to join his side of thinking through various persuasive techniques.

President Ronald Reagan’s speech “A Time for Choosing” was my selection for this assignment. Prior to his presidential election, Ronald Reagan was catapulted forward in his career by his motivational speech later titled by some simply as “The Speech”. At the time, Regan had recently changed from a long-standing Democrat to a Republican. Although his speech was unable to prevent President Lyndon Johnson’s ultimate win, it was very memorable due to the emotionally powerful and deeply moving presentation. Creating an unknown, yet powerful pull for his inevitable position as President. By conveying his points with such an emotional drive, “A Time for Choosing” became one of the most important speeches of his career. The soon to be President delivered this speech with strong words many Americans were not prepared to hear but came to accept. A speech that created many questions and provided many answers managed to express a level of emotion that seemed urgently calm. As one of President Reagans greatest speeches “A Time for Change” provided the world with a preview of a President in the making.

Reagan had gained strong speaking skills while previously working in the acting industry thus enabling him to better connect with his audience. Reagan believes that the country is headed in the wrong direction and that America has several challenges at home and abroad. America’s government was in an economic crisis during the time this speech was given. He knew the citizens needed to hear something strong and powerful that promised change for a better way of life. “A Time for Choosing” was deliberative and not only informed and inspired the audience but it also provided America with a lighthearted source of entertainment. The style changes at the end of the speech and establishes an optimistic anticipation for the future. Reagan constructs the case for Goldwater and states in his closing sentence “We will keep in mind and remember that Barry Goldwater has faith in us. He has faith

She claims that “he saw the many sides of the truth.” Reagan saw the Soviet Union’s prominent desire for military power and territorial expansion, but also “sensed that it was being eaten away by systemic failures.” In addition, he “realized that a man of good will might...emerge” from Moscow’s evil empire. Thatcher mentions the Cold War by exemplifying that Reagan possessed an awareness for realizing the hidden truths under chaotic circumstances. By showcasing Reagan’s capabilities during a demanding event such as the Cold War, Thatcher develops a positive image of Reagan for Americans citizens to fondly remember, but to also give recognition to President Reagan’s aptitude. When displaying Reagan’s great intuition when it came to politics, Thatcher stresses that he held aptitude for his position leading a grand country that felt weakened. Ronald Reagan successfully fostered America through tough times with strength and

In conclusion, President Reagan was operative in convincing his audience that he was the right choice for who should lead the U.S. I firmly believe that Ronald Reagan was the last good President we had in office. He not only kept to his word, but also was able to inspire the American people and remind them what hope was and what it looked and felt like. Shown through this piece, it is evident that he was an eloquent communicator and an overall persuasive orator. By using pathos, rhetorical questioning,

In a time of political chaos, numerous approaches to contending with the USSR were offered by various politicians, yet “the man who got things right from the start was, at first glance, an unlikely statesman… Through a combination of vision, tenacity, patience, and improvisational skill, he produced what Henry Kissinger terms ‘the most stunning diplomatic feat of the modern era…’ As Margaret Thatcher put it, ‘Ronald Reagan won the Cold War without firing a shot’” (D’Souza). Henry Kissinger was an “old nemesis” of Reagan, yet even he “observed that while it was Bush who presided over the final disintegration of the Soviet empire, ‘it was Ronald Reagan's Presidency which marked the turning point.’ [Additionally,] Cardinal Casaroli, the Vatican secretary of state, remarked publicly that the Reagan military buildup, which he had opposed at the time, had led to the collapse of Communism” (D’Souza). The great quantity of figures who have acknowledged the intelligence Reagan’s actions validates these actions as such. Many democratic opponents argued that “the West should ingratiate itself with the Soviet Union by pursuing ‘the stuffed-goose option—that is, providing them with all the grain and consumer goods they need.’ If Reagan had taken this advice when it was offered in 1982, the Soviet empire

President Ronald Reagan, the man who is accredited with ended the forty six year cold war was elected on Nov. 4, 1980. Reagan won his election with fifty percent of the popular vote over former President Jimmy Carter who had forty one percent. While Reagan as a president is praised for such successes as strengthening the national defense, stimulating growth in the U.S. economically, and as mentioned before he is considered the President who ended the Cold War. President Reagan had achieved many things by the end of his administration, but just as he had many successes his presidency was plagued with shortcomings and a handful of what could be considered flat out failures. The purpose of this writing is to establish and identify the ‘cons’ or failures of the Reagan administration, and provide a brief description of each different aspect of the administration.

Yet by the end of his second term, Ronald Reagan has decided to change his view on the Evil Empire and to have a fresh start. President Reagan has never supported communism, he was even the leader who was leading the anti-communist movement worldwide. From the beginning of his presidency, Reagan had an enormous distrust on the Soviet Union. In 1983, in one of his famous presidential speeches, he denounced the Soviet Union as an ‘evil empire’, in fact ‘the focus of evil in the modern world’. After long term of unpleasant relations two great powers have decided to move forward with the current days issues like

and its allies and the group of nations led by the Soviet Union. Direct military

This essay will focus on the Reagan Administration which spanned from January 1981 to January 1989. When Reagan became President, he had only one clear, defined foreign policy goal – containment of the Soviet Union, or the “evil empire” as he referred to it. He primarily wanted to stop the USSR from growing larger and to keep other non-Communist countries from becoming Communist. In the past, American presidents had used a theory called the “Domino Theory” to justify the need for intervention around

In the minds of many Americans Ronald Reagan is the president that ended the Cold War, but is this view accurate? They claim Reagan's unprecedented military spending forced the Soviets to crumble. However, many critics of the president's outspending theory claim that the Russian economy would have imploded without such spending, and a military buildup of that kind did nothing but delay peace. Although, Reagan's willingness to negotiate was a clear factor in ending the Cold War, his aggressive arms race may have done more to forestall peace than abet it. The ascendance of Mikhail Gorbachev to power, the stagnating economy of Russia, and the personal friendship forged between Gorbachev and Reagan were the clear factors that contributed to

Just over two years before Ronald Reagan competed in his first statewide or national office, the former actor gave a speech in support of a doomed presidential candidate, Senator Barry Goldwater. This speech had little effect on 1964 presidential election. However, the “A Time for Choosing” speech established Ronald Reagan as the future of the conservative movement, and outlined his view of what America should be. “A Time for Choosing” fastened Reagan’s conservatism in the minds of both Republicans and Americans. This speech propelled Reagan to win the California governor’s race in 1967 and a sweeping victory in the 1980 presidential election. The “A Time for Choosing” speech declared

The Cold War, which started sometime in the 1940’s, was a large quarrel between the United States and the Soviet Union. This dispute involved a lot of propaganda and threats of nuclear warfare. Despite all of the trouble though, after over forty years of fighting, the two leaders of these countries (Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev) would finally work out a solution. However, although they did reach an agreement, there were many differences between these two men.