Introduction
Ronald Reagan (1911-2004) was the 40th president of the United States of America from January 20, 1981 to January 20, 1989. He was a Republican and served two terms in office. He is considered by many people as one of the greatest presidents in American history. Section 1 of this paper begins by explaining why Reagan is considered a great president by many people, and also gives some background information on the state of the economy he had inherited. Section 2 reflects on Reagan’s domestic record, in particular three negative economic consequences that resulted from his policies and occurred during his presidency. Section 3 considers two aspects of Reagan’s foreign policy: the US invasion of Grenada, and the Iran-Contra
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There are five main reasons why Reagan is admired by large segments of the American public. Firstly, he is considered to have been a staunch patriot and a charismatic leader (Spinrad, 1991). These qualities were needed in a president at the time due to the influence of the Soviet Union and the threat of communism. It was also important due to Americans being demoralised from the failure in Vietnam. Secondly, the six months leading up to the end of his second term were characterised by increased cooperation with the Soviet Union’s Mikhail Gorbachev to reform the union. It eventually resulted in the total collapse of the Soviet Union and Reagan is credited for assisting in the eradication of the communist threat. The third, and more controversial reason for Reagan’s popularity, is the Ronald Reagan Legacy Project funded by conservative Americans (Norquist, n.d.). The project aims to instil the legacy of Reagan by lobbying to name buildings, roads, and landmarks after the president. This boosts the image and prestige of the president in the eyes of the people, especially for people who did not live during his presidency or do not know much about him.
The fourth reason for Reagan’s popularity is that he is perceived to have drastically improved the US economy and lives of Americans. One of the ways to understand this is by comparing the shape of the US economy when he took office to its shape when he left. The US
One major reason Ronald Reagan was able to defeat Carter in the election of 1980 was because Carter failed to rescue the hostages from the American embassy, prior to the election. He had already run for president in 1968 and in 1976, but didn’t win until 1980 as a Republican nominee because he established himself as the conservative candidate with the support of like-minded organizations such as the American Conservative Union. Reagan had several policies to try to recover the economy, one of them being deregulation, in which he advocated limiting government involvement in business. Following this policy, he deregulated several industries from government control. Another policy was to reduce inflation by controlling the growth of the money
In the year 1980, there was a lot of inflation and unemployment as well as the issue in Iran where extremist Muslims took more than fifty Americans as captives. As a result, the picture portrayed Jimmy Carter as an insecure candidate for president. Ronald Reagan, on the other hand, encouraged the American people to have hope and that our nation was a set example for others. He easily defeated Carter with a whopping 44 million votes and 489 electoral votes to 35.5 million votes and 44 electoral votes. His election to the presidency seemed to be a fresh new start for the U.S.; Reagan invigorated the national defense, cut taxes, and impede the expansion of the government. During his first term, there was the development of weapons and the military in the nation as well as the continuation of the Cold War. In Ronald Reagan’s second term, he created an accord with Mikhail Gorbachev, the head of the USSR. Both nations signed a compromise to eradicate intermediate-range nuclear missiles in 1987 and then the tearing of the Berlin Wall was encouraged.
Over many years, many presidents have come and gone. All of them typically have done something to “define” them or something that makes them different or to stand out from all the others. But Ronald Reagan was different. His impact was possibly the most controversial of them all. Some argue that many of the problems in the world today have been caused by him.
In 1980 the Republican party elected the paragon of a conservative. Ronald Reagan provided the ideal rightism in America, capturing that belief during throughout his presidency. Some on the left hold on to ideals of Reagan preventing the country from progressing to new grounds. Many Republicans robustly claim that he is the greatest president ever. Regardless of political preferences, Ronald Reagan’s two terms undeniably changed the world in and his presidency will be looked back upon on both sides of politics.
Thesis Statement: Ronald Reagan’s presidency was one of the most successful in United States history because he revitalized the failing economy, used his remarkable communication skills to reestablish America’s lost morale, and even played a vital role in ending the Cold War.
As President, Ronald Reagan encountered many significant events; from surviving an assassination attempt, to the space shuttle Challenger disaster. Perhaps the most significant event was the economic downturn. He came to office (much like President Obama) in the midst of an economic crisis; however, President Reagan was able to turn the economy around. How did he do this? In order to answer this question, you must first ask what the economy was like when he was sworn into office, how his policy changed from the prior administration’s policy, and how it contrasts our present economic policy.
Reagan revolution has developed over time and it continues to resonate today. Reagan inherited an economy that was ailing and characterized by high unemployment rate, budget deficits, and a small trade surplus. Reagan engaged in major tax cuts and also increased armament-spending factors that contributed to the turnaround of America’s economic situation. This turnaround significantly contributed to the current shape of the economy. However, Reagan’s economic policies of tax cuts, monetarism, retrenchment, and budget deficits have had several negative
President Reagan had many objectives and policies he had set in order to restore America’s economy. Reagan’s four
Ronald Reagan, President of the United States from 1981 through 1989, created economic policies throughout his presidency that aimed to pull the United States out of a recession. His policies, called Reaganomics, reduced government spending and reduced tax rates in order to foster economic growth. Reagan also appointed many conservative judges to the Supreme Court and federal courts in order to shift ideologies to the right. Because of this, Reagan was both underrated and overrated as a president.
Ronald Reagan is to this date the oldest serving president, and the effects of his presidency have affected not only the United States of America but most of the world as well. The consensus among historians is that Ronald Reagan left a lasting legacy that was a great one in numerous ways. His Reaganomics improved America’s economy greatly, and secured its future economic prosperity. He also fought communism head on and was able to end it in most parts of the world, but more importantly in Soviet Russia. However, in doing so he got wrapped up in the Iran-Contra Affair, which will forever be tied to his name in a negative regard. Within America, Reagan was able to improve society such as his success in curbing the use of illegal drugs.
Although he was a generally controversial president, Ronald Reagan’s policy decisions to stimulate economic prosperity, known as Reaganomics, were legitimately beneficial to the United States of America. First, in order to substantiate the success of Reagan’s economic policy decisions one must first grasp the varying levels of importance for each aspect of his plan. As Reagan’s policies were substantial decisions that defined his presidency and alienated an entire population of more economically liberal people, it makes sense that an understanding of his emphasis on certain decisions would lead to a more persuasive argument. Next, the negation of well formed and logical criticisms of Reagan’s economic policies also lend to the support of their benefits and success. Acknowledging a sensible counterargument and addressing specific points of critical analysis serves to further enhance the argument for the success of Reagan’s decisions. Furthermore, strong economic growth and the curbing of federal domestic power reinforce the accomplishments of Reaganomics. Though the U.S. did see economic growth, Reaganomics was not purely an economic plan, as cuts in government power, not including the military, benefitted the average American citizen. Moreover, Ronald Reagan’s economic decisions regarding Soviet foreign policy were also extremely beneficial to the United States. The tough decisions to further the national deficit proved a worthy sacrifice in pressuring the collapse
In the eyes of the American public, Congress and the World, President Reagan at the time of his presidency was considered to be the most triumphant and well-connected president of the United States. He always had a good way of keeping touch with his countrymen and making sure that he was leading them towards the right direction. Many Americans and the rest of the world as well agree that Reagan was a very good president. However, President Reagan is mostly remembered as the leader who reversed the constant shift power to Washington. He did this by removing many federal programs, cutting down on others and forcing cities and states to assume even more responsibility. He was just the type of a leader that the American people needed at the time (Smith & Tolbert, 2001).
If there is a single political figure from the past century to whom we can look and realize greatness, it is Ronald Reagan. And if there is a context in which to view the Presidency of Ronald Wilson Reagan, it is in the context of economics. In two scholarly biographies of our 40th president, The Reagan Effect by John W. Sloan, professor of political science at The University of Houston, and The Reagan Years written by several scholars and edited by Joseph Hogan, professor and head of the Department of Management at Birmingham Polytechnic Business School, Reagan and his presidency are meticulously analyzed under the lens of economics, among other things. Their findings, although contrasting in some areas, conclude, much to my pleasure, that President Reagan was a successful and influential president.
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.
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,