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Ronald Reagan´s Legacy: Influential or Not? Essay examples

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Ronald Reagan was born on February 6, 1911 in Tampico Illinois. Reagan is the son of salesman Jack Reagan and Nelle Reagan. He had one brother named Neil who eventually became an advertising executive. Growing up, Reagan’s father gave him the nickname “Dutch Boy” because of his fat little Dutchman appearance. Reagan attended Eureka College in Eureka Illinois where he was a member of the football team, captain of the swim team and was elected student body president. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics and Sociology. After graduation Reagan moved to Iowa and earned a job as a radio broadcaster. In 1937 he left Iowa and moved to Los Angeles where he pursued an acting career. 3 years later he married his first wife Jane …show more content…

On January 20, 1981, he took office as the 40th President of the United States of America. He chose his running mate, who was a former Texas Congressman and United Nations Ambassador, George Bush as his Vice President. 69 days later there was an attempted assassination but Reagan did not let that stop them. He was determined to heal and get back into office as quickly as possible. His determination won over many of the citizens. While Reagan was President, the economy made a change for the better. In February of 1981, he made his first proposal to the Congress to lower the taxes and rise the spending on defensive needs. The federal income tax rates were lowered significantly with the signing of the bipartisan Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981. The percentage of unemployment compared to when Carter was President decreased from 7.5% to 5.4%. On January 20, 1985, Reagan and Bush were elected back into office by the US citizens. In 1982, Reagan declared a War on Drugs. His focus was to fight for drug-free schools and workplaces, expanded drug treatment, stronger law enforcement and drug interdiction efforts, and greater public awareness. In 1986, Reagan signed a drug enforcement bill that budgeted $1.7 billion to fund the War on Drugs. The bill was strongly criticized. During his entire Presidency, Reagan had to deal with the Cold War. The Reagan Doctrine was created and Reagan went to work trying to begin the collapse of the communist government in Africa, Asia, and

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