Ronald Reagan

In 1961 Reagan spoke out against socialized medicine. Since 1965 when Medicare and Medicaid were enacted, the federal government controls payment for most U.S. healthcare: hospitals, drugs, doctors, nurses, and so on. Has this been a blessing or a curse? Milton Friedman, the small, talkative, smiling genius, perhaps the best economist ever, argued that governments should give the deserving needy money to buy education, housing, and healthcare, but...

In the 1982 State of the Union address on January 26, 1982, Reagan invokes his self-deprecating humor and calls for "a new spirit of partnership between this Congress and this administration". Reagan cites the "stagflation" of the 1970s: double digit inflation, interest rates over 21%, and over 8 million unemployed. Reagan notes economic improvement and calls for reduced federal spending, further tax reductions, and fewer regulations, saying our...

The 1986 State of the Union Address delivered February 4, 1986, was delayed following the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster which killed its seven crew members. Reagan reports the U.S. is the economic miracle to which the world once again turns, with record economic growth and inflation cut from over 12 to under 4 percent. But the federal budget system is broken. "We do not face large deficits because American families are undertaxed; we face those...

The 1987 State of the Union Address delivered January 27, 1987, in the 200th anniversary year of the U.S. Constitution, notes dramatic improvements in the inflation rate, interest rates, housing starts, and the unemployment rate. Reagan regrets the Iran-Contra controversy and promises to get to the bottom of it and take whatever action is called for. Though the Soviets transferred $75 billion in weapons to client-states like Syria, Vietnam, Cuba,...

On January 20, 1981, Reagan began his first presidential inauguration address by thanking Carter for his "gracious cooperation in the transition process". Reagan notes "one of the worst sustained inflations in our national history. It distorts our economic decisions, penalizes thrift, and crushes the struggling young and the fixed-income elderly alike." "In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem."...

The second of two debates between President Ronald Reagan and former Vice President Walter F. Mondale was held in Kansas City, Missouri on October 21, 1984. Edwin Newman was the debate moderator. Georgie Anne Geyer, Marvin Kalb, Morton Kondracke, and Henry Trewhitt were the four panelists who asked questions. This second debate was on defense and foreign policy. Questions focused on the following topics: Central America, the Soviet Union, regions...

No matter what else was going on in his life or where he was—travelling to make movies for G.E., in the California governor's office, at the White House, or on Air Force One, and sometimes even from across the room—Ronald Reagan wrote letters to Nancy Reagan, to express his love, thoughts, and feelings, and to stay in touch. Through letters and reflections, the characters, personalities, and private lives of a president and his first lady...