"Ronald Wilson Reagan" (born February 6, 1911) was the 40th (1981-1989) President of the United States. Reagan was also a noted film actor before entering politics. He is the longest-lived person to have served as President, as well as the oldest elected President (69 years and 349 days).
Child of an alcoholic father, Reagan developed an early gift for storytelling and acting.He was a first-rate radio announcer of Chicago Cubs games, getting only the bare outlines of the game from a ticker and relying on his imagination and storytelling gifts to flesh out the game. Once in 1934, during the ninth inning of a Cubs - St. Louis Cardinals game, the wire went dead.Reagan smoothly improvised a fictional play-by-play until the wire was restored.
Reagan had a successful career in Hollywood as a second-rank leading man, as his face and body were as handsome as his voice. In 1940 he played the role of George "The Gipper" Gipp in the film ''Knute Rockne All American'', from which he acquired the nickname "the Gipper", which he retained the rest of his life. Reagan himself considered that his best acting work was in ''Kings Row'' (1942).Other notable Reagan films include ''Hellcats of the Navy'' and the campy ''Bedtime for Bonzo''.
Ronald Reagan began his political life as a supporter of Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his New Deal. He gradually became a staunch anti-communist. His political career started through the presidency of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG). He gained political stature through radio broadcasts and speaking tours sponsored by the General Electric company.By the 1964 election he was a staunch supporter of conservative Republican Barry Goldwater.
In 1966, he was elected Governor of California. Reagan tried to gain the Republican presidential nomination in 1968, and again in 1976 over the incumbent Gerald Ford but wasdefeated at the Republican Convention. He succeeded in gaining the Republican nomination in 1980 and went on to be elected President in 1980 and 1984. Early in his presidency, Reagan survived an assassination attempt by John Hinckley Jr.. Like most successful politicians, he had great stage presence, and great instincts for how to come across to people and make them like him. For example, on March 8, 1983 he called the Soviet Union an "Evil Empire" and later in his presidency while speaking in front of the Berlin Wall he challenged Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev to "tear down this wall". Some historians believe that all of those traits would have been meaningless without his perceived enthusiasm for America and strong personal belief in the individual. On January 5, 1987 Reagan underwent prostate surgery which caused worries about his health.
* ending the high inflation that damaged the economy under his predecessor, Jimmy Carter.
Reagan's policies and successes or failures remain controversial in many areas including:
* Many of Reagan's supporters credit him with winning the Cold War. Others believe that the collapse of communism in 1989 was a result of internal failures much more than American policy.
* There is disagreement over how much Reagan's policies contributed both to the severe recession that took place in 1982, and the strong expansion that began late in his first term and ran throughout his second term.
* The combined tax cuts and military spending increases of his first term led to enormous deficit spending and a dramatic increase in the national debt.The debt increased by approximately 450% between when Reagan took office and when his successor, George Bush, left office.
* It is generally agreed that Reagan substantially weakened environmental protection.
* Reagan's tactics in the "war on drugs" emphasized imprisonment while slashing funding for addiction treatment.This resulted in a dramatic increase in the USA's prison population.Critics charged that the policies did little to actually reduce the availability of drugs or crime on the street while resulting in a great financial and human cost for American society.
* Reagan supported missile defense, hoping to make the US invulnerable to attack by the Soviet Union.Many of his critics felt that the goal was unattainable in practical terms, and that the attempt would be likely to increase the Arms Race, as well as being extremely expensive.
* Despite his frequent pronouncements that he advocated smaller and less intrusive government, Federal spending and bureaucracy increased in size during his administration; his increases in military and "drug war" spending were far larger than his cuts in social spending.
* Reagan's most infamous foreign policy decision was in illegally financing a civil war of the Contra guerrillas against the Sandinista government in Nicaragua. The civil war claimed over 15,000 lives, according to former CIA agent David MacMichael. Reagan's determination to continue support for the Contras despite opposition in Congress led to the worst scandal of his presidency, the Iran-Contras Affair.
* Reagan was regarded by some critics as indifferent to the needs of poor and minority citizens.
* Although considered personally honest by most Americans, there were multiple scandals of bribery, corruption, and influence peddling involving Reagan's aides and subordinates, resulting in some 30 members of his administration spending time in prison.
Reagan was in many ways the founder of the modern Republican Party.His redefinition of fiscal conservatism as being focused on tax cuts without regard to a balanced budget ("Reaganomics"), his opposition to progressive taxation, his hostility to environmental protection and abortion, the importance of the Moral Majority and its supporters in his governing coalition, and even his fascination with missile defense have all become trademarks of subsequent Republican leaders, including George W. Bush.Reagan's immediate predecessors such as Richard Nixon and Dwight Eisenhower would not have recognized any of these as part of the Republican platform.
During his administration, there was a major scandal and investigation of his administration's covert support of wars in Iran and Nicaragua in what came to be known as the Iran-Contra Affair. His quick call for the appointment of an Independent Counsel to investigate, and cooperation with counsel, kept the scandals from affecting his presidency.
The aircraft carrier USS ''Ronald Reagan'' (CVN-76) was christened March 4, 2001, making it one of the very few US Navy ships to be named for a living person.(The first was
USS ''Hyman G. Rickover'' (SSN 709),
*Anthony M. Kennedy - 1988
* U.S. presidential election, 1976
* U.S. presidential election, 1980
* U.S. presidential election, 1984
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License, which means that you can
copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license.
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for details. It uses material from the Wikipedia article
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Ronald Reagan in the News
1000 USATODAY.com - Can Schwarzenegger's clout help carry elections ...
Feb 27, 2004 ... Better than Ronald Reagan, a California governor who became - "the great communicator" as president in the 1980s? ...
www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/columnis t/raasch/2004-02-27-raasch_x.htm
http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/columnist/raasch/2004-02-27-raasch_x.htm (USA Today)
1000 Ronald Reagan Parkway in Senate committee Wednesday
Some Middle Tennessee lawmakers want State Route 840 renamed Ronald Reagan Parkway and a prime sponsor says a lawmaker from Old Hickory offered a bill for Al Gore Jr. Parkway.
http://www.lucianne.com/threads2.asp?artnum=118665 (AltaVista News)
1000 Koch: USS Ronald Reagan comes to life
(07.12.2003)The U.S. Navy on Saturday commissioned the USS Ronald Reagan, the United States' newest nuclear aircraft carrier, and the first to ever be named after a living president.
http://search.cnn.com/cnn/redir?source=cnn&errorFlag=0&requestId=17683&a... (CNN)
975 Letters for March 1, 2004
In 1984, Ronald Reagan won re-election with more votes ever cast for any candidate anywhere at any time. The total was in excess of 54 million votes. He won because conservatives not only voted for him but worked for his election.
http://www.santamariatimes.com/articles/2004/03/01/sections/opinion/030104letter... (AltaVista News)
973 Ronald Reagan turns 90
(02.06.2001)Former president Ronald Reagan was spending his 90th birthday Tuesday at home with his wife, Nancy, who says her husband has "had an incredible life."
http://search.cnn.com/cnn/redir?source=cnn&errorFlag=0&requestId=17683&a... (CNN)
972 USATODAY.com - Presidential campaign quickly reshaped
Feb 26, 2004 ... Better than Ronald Reagan, a California governor who became - "the great communicator" as president in the 1980s? ...
www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/columnis t/raasch/2004-02-26-raasch_x.htm
http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/columnist/raasch/2004-02-26-raasch_x.htm (USA Today)
950 Sequel to Ronnie & Tony show
New Delhi, Feb. 29: In the age of globalisation, the BJP is going beyond national boundaries in search of campaign inspiration. Party strategists are picking ideas from Ronald Reagan and Tony Blair s campaigns when they ran for a second term.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1040301/asp/frontpage/story_2953873.asp (AltaVista News)
946 Gorbachev endorses Congressional Gold Medal for Ronald Reagan
(03.15.2000) The award of the Gold Medal of the U.S. Congress to Ronald Reagan is afitting tribute, Gorbachev wrote in a letter released Wednesday. Togetherwith Ronald Reagan, we took the first, most important steps to end the Cold Warand start real...
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944 USATODAY.com - Bennett lends voice to 'Morning' radio
Feb 25, 2004 ... Bennett lends voice to 'Morning' radio Bill Bennett, who served as Ronald Reagan's - Education secretary and President Bush's first drug czar before making ...
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http://www.usatoday.com/life/columnist/mediamix/2004-02-25-media-mix_x.htm (USA Today)
925 Woman retires without hearing single draft board case
CORVALLIS, Ore. (AP) ? Twenty years after former President Ronald Reagan appointed her to a draft board, Peggy Peirson retired last week without having to hear a single case ? but she worries that may change.
http://www.kgw.com/sharedcontent/APStories/stories/D81160881.html (AltaVista News)
919 Lance Morrow The mystery of Ronald Reagan lives on
(04.19.2000)One night in the mid80s, Morris and his wife, Sylvia, had dinner with Reagan at the White House. Morris was being considered for the role of official biographer. Damned if I can figure him out, Morris said as they drove away. Is he a...
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917 USATODAY.com - Bush backs gay-marriage ban
Feb 25, 2004 ... The elder George Bush called for an amendment banning flag burning and Ronald Reagan - sent Congress an amendment permitting organized prayer in public schools. ...
www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2004-0 2-24-bush-marriage_x.htm
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2004-02-24-bush-marriage_x.htm (USA Today)
900 Gay Republican tornbybanplan
Shari Goldsberry is a Republican, proud of it and eager to exert elbow grease to further the conservative causes that her party represents. She has been since she was 8. That's when she became active in politics by putting up signs for Ronald Reagan.
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/2426672 (AltaVista News)
893 Larry King Live Transcript Should Secret Service Agents Have To Testify
(07.15.1998) In Chicago, Tim McCarthy, the former Secret Service agent who took a bullet for Ronald Reagan on that fateful day in 1981. Mr. McCarthys former colleague, Jerry Parr, joins us in Washington. He was the agent who shoved President...
http://search.cnn.com/cnn/redir?source=cnn&errorFlag=0&requestId=17683&a... (CNN)
889 USATODAY.com - Not so fast, prognosticators
Feb 20, 2004 ... Edwards or the "bring it on" exhortations of Kerry. Already, there are hints of a - reprise of the "Morning in America" campaign that Ronald Reagan ran in 1984. ...
www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/columnis t/raasch/2004-02-20-rausch_x.htm
http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/columnist/raasch/2004-02-20-rausch_x.htm (USA Today)
875 Reagan OK'd plan to sabotage Soviets
WASHINGTON - In January 1982, President Ronald Reagan approved a CIA plan to sabotage the economy of the Soviet Union through covert transfers of technology that contained hidden malfunctions, including software that later triggered a huge explosion in a Siberian natural gas pipeline, according to a new memoir by a Reagan White House official.
http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20040227/1027827.asp (AltaVista News)
866 Navy commissions newest aircraft carrier
(07.12.2003)The USS Ronald Reagan was formally commissioned Saturday, becoming the first aircraft carrier named after a living former president, and the newest nuclear-powered carrier in the Navy.
http://search.cnn.com/cnn/redir?source=cnn&errorFlag=0&requestId=17683&a... (CNN)
861 Biography of Ronald Reagan
Biography of Ronald Reagan, the fortieth President of the United States (1981-1989). ... Home - > History & Tours > Past Presidents > Ronald W. Reagan. Ronald Reagan. ... Description:
A short biography from the official Whitehouse 'Past Presidents' site.www.whitehouse.gov/history/presiden ts/rr40.html
http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/rr40.html (USA Today)
839 Poll: Majority of Americans believe Bush will move the country in the right direction
(01.12.2001)Most Americans are confident in George W. Bush's ability to handle the economy and world affairs, but he gets slightly lower marks than Bill Clinton at the start of his first term and significantly lower ratings than Ronald Reagan in...
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834 Reagan Library and Museum
Description:
Repository of documents and paraphernalia from the Reagan Administration.www.reagan.utexas.edu/
http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/ (USA Today)
Ronald Reagan on the Web
1000 Ronald Reagan Presidential Library (official site)
The Ronald Reagan Library is part of the presidential libraries system administered by the National Archives and Records Administration, a federal...
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974 The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation
The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library Museum and Store, preserves the integrity, sanctity and dignity of the American Presidency and celebrates the...
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948 Biography of Ronald Reagan
Biography of Ronald Reagan, the fortieth President of the United States (1981-1989).
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922 The Ronald Reagan Homepage
The Ronald Reagan Information Page presents the real history of the 1980s. Using primary source material we bring you The Truth about the 1980s (SM).
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896 USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76)
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870 Ronald Reagan...The Official Site
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845 Encyclopedia Americana: Ronald Reagan
RONALD REAGAN Biography. Ronald Reagan, (1911- ), ra'g[sch ]n, 40th PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
http://gi.grolier.com/presidents/ea/bios/40preag.html (AskJeeves/Teoma)
819 Presidents of the United States: Ronald Wilson Reagan POTUS: Ronald
Ronald Wilson Reagan ... 40th President of the United States (January 20, 1981 to January 20, 1989) Nicknames: "The Gipper";
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793 Coming Soon!
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767 Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
Official information about Ronald Reagan Washington National (DCA) and the services provided.
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741 Soldier City: USS RONALD REAGAN CVN-76 BALLCAP only $15.95 - Serving America's H
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716 The Reagan Information Interchange
Ronald Reagan. My Father. The Reagan Collection. Audio Archive. Speeches. Portraits. Video Library. Reagan Ranch. USS Ronald Reagan...
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690 Ronald Reagan Legacy Project
Welcome to the Ronald Reagan Legacy Project's Home Page. please click the logo below to enter. Contribute to Join ... 9...
http://www.reaganlegacy.org/ (AskJeeves/Teoma)
664 Ronald Reagan and the Soviet Union Reagan and the Soviets
Examines the last few years of the Cold War, with a particular focus on Ronald Reagan's policy towards the Soviet Union. Includes pictures and a...
http://www.reagan.dk/ (AskJeeves/Teoma)
638 Ronald W. Reagan Presidential Library and Museum Bookstore
The Reagan Style. By now its pretty clear that Ronald Reagan changed the American presidency even as he changed America itself.
http://www.reaganlibrary.net/ (AskJeeves/Teoma)
612 Buy Ronald Reagan-a Legacy Remembered DVD - Deepdiscountdvd.com
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587 Commissioning of USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76)
Information about the ship, crew, Ronald Reagan, and the commissioning of CVN-76.
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561 Reagan's Legacy
Discover Ronald Reagan's true legacy. It is not what you think!
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535 Ronald Reagan: First Inaugural Address
Ronald Reagan...
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509 Young America's Foundation
Do you want to learn all you can about Ronald Reagan? Bring 'Ronald Reagan's legacy to life' and ' meet influential conservative activists...
http://www.yaf.org/ (AskJeeves/Teoma)
