The Most Consequential Elections in History: Ronald Reagan and the Election of 1980

Why Gov. Reagan was not recalled--from an insider

I worked hard to Recall Reagan, so my name was in the papers as I sought people to circulate petitions for signatures. I did it because RR, as a Regent, began tuition at our Land Grant colleges for the first time. He closed many public health agencies & his pals built their own. They benefited from govt. paid medical bills. Notaries by law had to notarize free the petitions. Many carriers told me notaries refused to notarize or charged as much as $10 a page. Some county clerks closed offices at odd times to prevent presentation of completed petitions. At that time, each signature had to have the precinct number with it. Many signers omitted that, invalidating their signature. In the last weeks, I went to LA County courthouse with others and used heavy registration books to fill in precinct numbers. The Recall failed. A student borrowed my notes & files for a doctoral dissertation. I'm told his work led to a change in the law so it's OK to omit precinct numbers. RR said his presidency was guided by the Vatican. As a Ban-Abortionist, RR increased Big Government by having so many people enforce church law banning abortion. Bush son did the same.

Not an Explanation of the Financial Crisis

Ah, Daniel, a well-written piece, but not an explanation of the financial crisis of today. My point is not all government is bad. Some government in the form of regulation and oversight is necessary, especially in the financial sector. Regulation and oversight are necessary, or unrestrained greed and corruption will take over, as they have today. Greed is what drives Wall Street, but it must be regulated, or unbridled speculation will be our downfall. Research the combined effect of the 1999 Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and the 2000 Commodities Act (put in at last minute by Phil Gramm)--I was wrong about the dates-- and laws written by lobbyists for special interest groups, and see what effect that had. You cannot-- as Phil Gramm did-- put out into the public arena those off-the-books "credit default swaps" with no oversight from either the SEC (Securities exchange Commission) or the CTFC (Commodities Futures Trading Commission) without an eventual disastrous result. John McCain, Phil Gramm, and Allen Greenspan caused the majority of this mess by installing deregulation and no oversight under the guise of less government. REPUBLICANS REMOVED THE SAFETY NET FROM THE CIRCUS SWING THAT IS THE GAMBLE OF WALL STREET. I am just an average citizen who can read and research for myself --then hopefully --in a way the average person can understand-- set forth the main reasons for the incredible financial mess we are in today. Facts tell me deregulation and no oversight caused most of this financial crisis. Facts also tell me John McCain played a big part in it, and as President he will be just "more of the same." As I said before, at your own peril, vote Republican.

Limited Government, Not Less Government

Dorothy, you are mistaken. Its not totally your fault, though, the Republican Party has lacked the ability to eloquently explain and defend its views for a very, very long time. Perhaps they've forgotten their foundations all-together. As I understand it, what true conservatives value and strive for is Limited government. We believe that government is not bad, on the contrary, it is necessary, but only within the very specific limits of the Constitution. In this day in age, the federal government has overstepped its lawful bounds in so many ways, it is easy to understand how a conservative can sound like an anarchist.

Take the Department of Education: The Constitution does not give Congress the authority to administer a national public education system. This is a role better left to individual states and local communities. It would give you more of a say in the specific educational needs felt in your hometown, in your family. As it now stands, the federal government, far removed from you in Texas, dictates your local curriculum. A very unflexible system.

Another example is the financial industry. The Constitution does not give Congress the authority to regulate (let me explain) the markets. It does give Congress the authority to regulate the value of your currency (and your dollar has been steadily losing purchasing power through monetary inflation since 1913) and international trade and administer justice in federal courts of law. Giving people individual freedom and responsibility naturally results in free marketplaces, where people can buy and sell goods and services with other willing parties. Of course, contracts must be upheld, theivery punished, unsafe products proclaimed. This is justice, and these your safeguards. But regulation infringes on individual freedom and opens the door to a flood of inintended consequences.

On the other hand, the Federal Government has some very important roles, which should be administered efficiently, skillfully, and strongly. These include foreign diplomacy, national defense, Federal courts, the coining/printing of money, the regulation of international and interstate commerce, and several others (see Article 1, Section 8). The Constitution is clear that those powers not delegated to the Federal government are reserved for the States and the People. This is why conservatives strive for limited government. It preserves freedom, by putting most power in the hands of the states and local communities.

If you disagree with those powers, then the Constitution needs to be amended.

Ronald Reagan's Less Government

I voted twice for Ronald Reagan. I came to regret my vote because Reagan's vision for the nation--very memorable and on track as a whole-- was less government. Reagan had a strong belief in the individual. That was a great thing; however, over the years, Republicans insisted government--any form of government--was a bad thing and not at all necessary. Under the guise of less government, Republicans asked for & got deregulation and no oversight--eventually a free market with no holds barred and no protections, just as it was right before the Great Depression. The thought was that a Watchdog--the government--was not necessary--folks could be trusted to do the right thing on their own. John McCain deregulated the savings & loan industry in the 1980's & they failed. John McCain was a part of the Keating Five Scandal. John McCain, Phil Gramm & Allen Greenspan deregulated just about everything else, with Ken Lay's Enron lobbyists even sitting beside Phil Gramm in Congress & writing the laws--all the while removing the safeguards put in by Franklin Delano Roosevelt--A Democrat-- in the 1930's to protect the American people from the incredible financial mess we are experiencing today. It is ironic that many of our great leaders were liberal Democrats until they got rich and became greedy Republicans. If the American people do not learn from the past, we are doomed to keep repeating it, as the financial debacle of today proves. "More of the same" will not get us back on track, and John McCain is just "more of the same." At your own peril, vote Republican.

A Living Inspiration!!!

As a young Airforce airman when President Reagan was first elected, he took our nation on an incredible journey of inspiration and pride. He resurrected the B1B bomber program and we worked 72 hour shifts to make it a success. He was simply a walking, talking inspiration to America. I consider myself bessed for having served under his guidance!!!

Article

I enjoyed this article it was well written, giving the reader a succinct and accurate look at one the country's greatest presidents. As a current college student at the Whitehead School of Diplomacy in Seton Hall University I have written a couple a papers on Reagan's leadership and how his Reagan Doctrine essentially won the Cold War, by ending the conflict much sooner than it would have prehaps ended if ever without him.

He was indeed a memorable American, great communicator (as was one of his nicknames), and a skilled diplomat. He envisioned an America where the individual was free from government intervention and the world free of the communist menace and by the end of his presidency we as a whole were one-step closer to that vision.

I admired how even when the Congress disagreed with him that he would take his message to the American-people via television and his power of persuasion through speech. And once he had been herd the Congress fell in line. He was a true leader, because he got the American people to do things on their own self-interest. He uplifted and inspired the individual to be much more than just the masses. He spoke with clarity and substance, addressing real problems with real solutions. He was a uniter, not a divider. He made Americans believe in themselves and by doing so is how we became that "shining city on the hill."

Now with the state of how things are: border lining on a recession, inflation, high gas prices, government over-regulation, terrorist holding Americans and allied citizens in contempt around the world, and the reemergence of Russia as a major actor in the international system, who we need now is Ronald Reagan. I fear that President Bush and his big-government conservatism (i.e. Compassionate Conservatism) has taken our country back to the era of Jimmy Carter with more entitlement spending than LBJ's "Great Society." Sadly however none of the two major candidates offer the type of vision, agenda, and optimism of Ronald Wilson Reagan.

Once again I would like to thank Mr. Walsh for writing this great article and posting it. Bravo and well written.

I'm a hot white single READER who thinks USNWR needs to remove spam like the last post from its site.

Editors? Where are you?

As for Reagan, he was lipstick on a pig. Conservatism was the pig. A western movie actor for heaven's sake. A big tall dude with a horse and a gun.

Now you idiots want a hockey mom that shoots moose while getting prayed over at gatherings of witch-hunting Penetcostals.

We're form over substance as a society for sure if this is elected.