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Personal life 33rd Governor of California
40th President of the United States Legacy | ||
The speeches and debates of Ronald Reagan comprise the seminal oratory of the 40th President of the United States. Reagan began his career in Iowa as a radio broadcaster. In 1937, he moved to Los Angeles where he started acting, first in films and later television. After delivering a stirring speech in support of Barry Goldwater's presidential candidacy in 1964, he was persuaded to seek the California governorship, winning two years later and again in 1970. In 1980, as the Republican nominee for president of the United States, he defeated incumbent Jimmy Carter. He was reelected in a landslide in 1984, proclaiming that it was "Morning in America". Reagan left office in 1989.
After graduating from Eureka College in Illinois, Reagan moved first to Iowa to work as a radio broadcaster. Then, in 1937, to California where he began a career as an actor, first in films and later television.
In 1964 Reagan endorsed the campaign of conservative presidential contender Barry Goldwater. In his speech, "A Time for Choosing", Reagan stressed the need for smaller government. The speech raised 1 million dollars for Goldwater [1] and is considered the event that launched Reagan's political career. [2] It also marked a shift of the Republican Party from a moderate to a "Western more politically charged ideology." [3] California Republicans were impressed with Reagan's political views and charisma after his "Time for Choosing" speech, [4] and nominated him for Governor of California in 1966. Reagan was elected governor and served two terms.
At the first Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in 1974 Reagan addressed the attendees saying "We Will Be As a Shining City upon a Hill", in reference to John Winthrop's use of the City upon a Hill trope from Matthew 5:14; with the addition of "shining" it became Reagan's trademark expression. [5]
In 1980 Reagan challenged Jimmy Carter for the presidency of the United States. During their only debate, Reagan used the phrase, "There you go again." The line emerged as a single defining phrase of the 1980 presidential election. [6] The phrase has endured in the political lexicon in news headlines, as a way to quickly refer to various presidential candidates' bringing certain issues up repeatedly during debates, or to Reagan himself. [7] The Associated Press wrote in 2008: "Reagan was a master at capturing a debate moment that everyone will remember. His 'there you go again' line defused his opponent's attack." [8] In the general election Reagan won by a landslide.
Reagan was the first American president to address the British Parliament. [9] In a famous address on June 8, 1982, to the British Parliament in the Royal Gallery of the Palace of Westminster, Reagan said, "the forward march of freedom and democracy will leave Marxism–Leninism on the ash-heap of history." [10] [11]
Reagan ran for reelection in 1984. The Democratic nominee was Walter Mondale. Reagan performed poorly in the first debate, but rebounded in the second debate, and confronted questions about his age, quipping, "I will not make age an issue of this campaign. I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent's youth and inexperience," which generated applause and laughter, even from Mondale himself. [12] Mondale later recalled that
If TV can tell the truth, as you say it can, you'll see that I was smiling. But I think if you come in close, you'll see some tears coming down because I knew he had gotten me there. That was really the end of my campaign that night, I think. [I told my wife] the campaign was over, and it was. [13]
The disintegration of the Space Shuttle Challenger on January 28, 1986, proved a pivotal moment in Reagan's presidency. All seven astronauts aboard were killed. [14] On the night of the disaster, Reagan delivered a speech, written by Peggy Noonan, in which he said:
The future doesn't belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the brave... We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and 'slipped the surly bonds of Earth' to 'touch the face of God.' [15]
The speech is ranked as one of the ten best American political speeches of the 20th century. [16]
Reagan believed that Western Democracy offered the best hope to open the Berlin Wall. [17] On June 12, 1987, he gave a speech at the Wall in which he challenged Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev to "Tear down this wall!" Reagan's senior staffers objected to the phrase, but Reagan overruled them saying, "I think we'll leave it in." [18] "Tear down this wall!" has been called "The four most famous words of Ronald Reagan's Presidency." [19] Although there is some disagreement over how much influence Reagan's words had on the destruction of the wall, the speech is remembered as an important moment in Cold War history and was listed by Time magazine as one of the ten greatest speeches in history. [18] [20]
Reagan's effectiveness as a public speaker earned him the moniker, "Great Communicator." Former Reagan speechwriter Ken Khachigian wrote, "What made him the Great Communicator was Ronald Reagan's determination and ability to educate his audience, to bring his ideas to life by using illustrations and word pictures to make his arguments vivid to the mind's eye. In short: he was America's Teacher." [21]
Franklin D. Roosevelt, from whom Reagan often borrowed, ushered in a new age of presidential communication by broadcasting his "fireside chats" on the newly invented radio. Reagan, in his time, put his own stamp on presidential communication by harnessing the power of television broadcasting. [22] He used skills developed during his radio, film and television career, and according to Lou Cannon, Reagan "set the standard in using television to promote his presidency." [22] Khachigian noted three qualities that fostered Reagan's success. He described Reagan's voice as "a fine Merlot being poured gently into a crystal goblet." Reagan, a trained actor, has excellent "camera presence." Khachigan found Reagan's ability to create word pictures critical in communicating with his audience. [21]
Reagan said that it was his "empathy" with the American people that made him an effective communicator and leader. Reagan was able to connect to people through storytelling. While this simple form of communicating led detractors such as Clark Clifford to label Reagan as "an amiable dunce", Michael K. Deaver likened this dismissive attitude to a "secret weapon." [22]
At the end of his political career, Reagan reflected on the moniker "Great Communicator." At his farewell address he said: [22]
I wasn't a great communicator, but I communicated great things, and they didn't spring full bloom from my brow, they came from the heart of a great nation–from our experience, our wisdom and our belief in the principles that have guided us for two centuries.
Governor – first term (1967–1971) |
Governor – second term (1971–1975) |
President – first term (1981–1985) |
President – second term (1985–1989) |
Year | Date | Speech | Location | Media | Text | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1964 | October 27 | "A Time for Choosing". In this televised speech Reagan stressed his belief in smaller government saying, "The Founding Fathers knew a government can't control the economy without controlling people. And they knew when a government sets out to do that, it must use force and coercion to achieve its purpose. So we have come to a time for choosing." The speech launched Reagan's political career. | Los Angeles, CA [23] | |||
1967 | January 5 | "California and the Problem of Government Growth". In his gubernatorial inaugural address he outlined his direction for the state saying, "The cost of California's government is too high. It adversely affects our business climate. We are going to squeeze and cut and trim until we reduce the cost of government." | Sacramento, CA | |||
1974 | January 25 | "We Will Be As a City upon a Hill" is a line from a speech Reagan delivered at the first Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) which would become his signature saying. | Washington, D.C. [24] | |||
1975 | March 1 | "Let Them Go Their Way". In the wake of heavy Republican losses in 1974 Reagan resists suggestions to "broaden the base." At the CPAC convention Reagan addressed moderates saying "let them go their way." [25] | Washington, D.C. [26] | |||
1976 | March 31 | "To Restore America". In a challenge to President Gerald Ford, Reagan announces his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination in this televised address. | CA | |||
1976 | August 19 | "A Shining City on a Hill". Reagan's impromptu concession speech at the 1976 Republican National Convention has been called a "defining moment of the Reagan Revolution." [27] | Kansas City, MO | |||
1977 | February 6 | "The New Republican Party" was a speech delivered at CPAC in which Reagan calls for expanding the Republican Party to African Americans. [28] | Washington, D.C. | |||
1980 | July 17 | "Time to Recapture Our Destiny". Presidential nomination acceptance speech at the 1980 Republican National Convention. Regarding Democratic opponent Jimmy Carter he said, "A recession is when your neighbor loses his job. A depression is when you lose yours. And recovery is when Jimmy Carter loses his." | Detroit, MI | |||
1981 | January 20 | In his first inaugural address, which Reagan himself wrote, [29] he addressed the country's economic malaise arguing: "In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problems; government is the problem." Written by Reagan and Ken Khachigian. [30] [31] | Washington, D.C. | |||
1981 | February 18 | Address to a joint session of Congress | Washington, D.C. | |||
1981 | April 28 | Address on the Program for Economic Recovery | Washington, D.C. | |||
1982 | January 26 | First State of the Union address. Reagan spoke on economic issues in 1981 in lieu of a State of the Union address.[ citation needed ] The speech is known for Reagan's proposal to increase the power of the states, dubbed "New Federalism" by the media. [32] Reagan recognizes Lenny Skutnik and starts a tradition. (excerpt) | Washington, D.C. | |||
1982 | June 8 | Address to the British Parliament. Notable for Reagan's use of the expression "ash heap of history" in predicting the fall of the Soviet Union. The phrase was suggested by Tony Dolan [33] | London, UK | |||
1982 | June 17 | Reagan's first address to the United Nations General Assembly was extremely critical of the Soviet Union. [34] He accused the Soviets of "tyranny," "ruthless repression" and "atrocities." He closed by saying, "We must serve mankind through genuine disarmament." | New York, NY | |||
1982 | November 22 | "Address to the Nation on Strategic Arms Reduction and Nuclear Deterrence." Reagan announces the deployment of MX missiles. | Washington, D.C. | |||
1983 | January 25 | In the 1983 State of the Union Address Reagan stressed that the economy was "on the mend." He warned that deficits were "a clear and present danger to the basic health of the republic" and recommended a far-ranging freeze on spending. [35] (excerpt) | Washington, D.C. | |||
1983 | March 8 | Speech delivered to the National Association of Evangelicals. First use of the description "Evil Empire." The speech was written by Tony Dolan. [36] | Orlando, FL | |||
1983 | March 23 | The Strategic Defense Initiative is outlined in an address to the nation. | Washington, D.C. | |||
1984 | January 25 | 1984 State of the Union Address. Reagan reported that the economy is in full recovery and calls on Congress to work together to reduce deficits. He announces plans to build a space station saying, "We can follow our dreams to distant stars, living and working in space for peaceful economic and scientific gain." (excerpt) | Washington, D.C. | |||
1984 | June 6 | The "Boys of Pointe du Hoc" speech was delivered on the 40th anniversary of D-Day. The speech was written by Peggy Noonan. [16] | Normandy | |||
1985 | January 21 | Second inaugural address to the nation. Because January 20 fell on a Sunday, a public celebration was not held but took place in the Capitol Rotunda the following day. January 21 was one of the coldest days on record in Washington, D.C.; due to poor weather, inaugural celebrations were held inside the Capitol. [37] Written by Reagan, Bently Elliott, Noonan and Dolan. [31] | Washington, D.C. | |||
1985 | February 6 | 1985 State of the Union Address. The Reagan Doctrine is introduced. Speech is given on Reagan’s 74th birthday. | Washington, D.C. | |||
1986 | January 28 | Address to the nation regarding the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster. The speech is ranked as one of the ten best American political speeches of the 20th century [16] | Washington, D.C. | |||
1986 | February 4 | The 1986 State of the Union Address was postponed due to the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster. In the speech Reagan calls abortion "a wound in our national conscience" and he reopened the welfare debate saying, "in the welfare culture, the breakdown of the family ... has reached crisis proportions." He explains that the recovery was attributed to "the American people" and their "quiet courage and common sense..." | Washington, D.C. | |||
1987 | January 27 | 1987 State of the Union Address. He said "mistakes were made" in the Iran–Contra affair. | Washington, D.C. | |||
1987 | June 12 | Brandenburg Gate speech. Reagan challenges Gorbachev to "Tear down this wall!." The speech made Time magazine's "Top 10 Greatest Speeches List" [20] and was written by Peter Robinson. [38] | West Berlin | |||
1988 | January 25 | 1988 State of the Union Address. This was Reagan's last State of the Union Address. Not content to rest on his laurels, he announced a policy agenda. He famously summarized the effect of government intervention on the poor saying: "Some years ago the federal government declared War on Poverty, and poverty won." [39] (excerpt) | Washington, D.C. | |||
1989 | January 11 | Reagan states in his farewell address: "They called it the Reagan revolution. Well, I'll accept that, but for me it always seemed more like the great rediscovery, a rediscovery of our values and our common sense." The speech was written by Peggy Noonan. | Washington, D.C. | |||
1990 | November 19 | "The Brotherhood of Man". At the dedication of a monument to Winston Churchill, Reagan discusses the fall of the Berlin Wall the previous year. | Fulton, MO | |||
1992 | August 17 | "Empire of Ideals" was a speech delivered at the Republican National Convention. Regarding Democratic presidential nominee Bill Clinton Reagan quipped, "I knew Thomas Jefferson. He was a friend of mine. And governor, you're no Thomas Jefferson." (excerpt) | Houston, TX | |||
1994 | February 3 | Remarks on the occasion of his 83rd birthday | Washington, D.C. |
In 2009 a list was compiled by professors at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and Texas A&M University and based on the opinions of "137 leading scholars of American public address." [16] The speeches by Ronald Reagan which made the list are below:
#8 | Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster Address |
#25 | "A Time For Choosing" |
#29 | "The Evil Empire" |
#30 | First Inaugural address |
#60 | "Boys of Pointe Du Hoc" |
#94 | Brandenburg Gate Address |
Time magazine listed the Brandenburg Gate Address on its list of "Top 10 Greatest Speeches". [20]
Year | Date | Debate | Location | Media | Transcript | |
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1980 | February 23 | Debate with former CIA Director George H. W. Bush for the Republican presidential nomination. When Reagan's microphone is turned off, the former governor paraphrases Spencer Tracy and yells, "I paid for this microphone, Mr. Green!" | Nashua, NH | |||
1980 | October 28 | Presidential debate with President Jimmy Carter. Reagan baits the president by saying, "There you go again," and in closing asks voters: "Are you better off than you were four years ago?" | Cleveland, OH | |||
1984 | October 21 | Second presidential debate with former Vice President Walter Mondale. President Reagan said he wouldn't hold Mondale's "youth and inexperience" against him. | Kansas City, MO |
Ronald Wilson Reagan was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. A member of the Republican Party, his presidency constituted the Reagan era, and he is considered one of the most prominent conservative figures in American history.
The 1980 United States presidential election was the 49th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 4, 1980. The Republican ticket of Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush defeated incumbent Democratic president Jimmy Carter and incumbent vice president Walter Mondale in a landslide victory.
The 1984 United States presidential election was the 50th quadrennial presidential election held on Tuesday, November 6, 1984. Incumbent Republican president Ronald Reagan defeated Democratic former vice president Walter Mondale in a landslide victory.
Walter Frederick "Fritz" Mondale was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 42nd vice president of the United States from 1977 to 1981 under President Jimmy Carter. A U.S. senator from Minnesota from 1964 to 1976, he was the Democratic Party's nominee in the 1984 presidential election, but lost to incumbent Ronald Reagan in an Electoral College and popular vote landslide.
The "Evil Empire" speech was a speech delivered by U.S. President Ronald Reagan to the National Association of Evangelicals on March 8, 1983 at the height of Cold War and Soviet-Afghan War. In that speech, Reagan referred to the Soviet Union as an "evil empire" and as "the focus of evil in the modern world". Reagan explicitly rejected the notion that the United States and the Soviet Union were equally responsible for the Cold War and the ongoing nuclear arms race between the two nations; rather, he asserted that the conflict was a battle between good and evil.
Peter Mark Robinson is an American author, research fellow, television host and former speechwriter for then-Vice President George H. W. Bush and President Ronald Reagan. He is currently the host of Uncommon Knowledge, an interview show by Stanford's Hoover Institution. He is also a research fellow at the Hoover Institution, and a co-founder of the Ricochet website.
Margaret Ellen Noonan, known as Peggy Noonan, is a weekly columnist for The Wall Street Journal, and contributor to NBC News and ABC News. She was a primary speechwriter and Special Assistant to President Ronald Reagan from 1984 to 1986 and has maintained a center-right leaning in her writings since leaving the Reagan administration. Five of Noonan's books have been New York Times bestsellers.
The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library is the repository of presidential records from the Reagan administration. Located in Simi Valley, California, the library is administered by the National Archives and Records Administration and is the burial place of Ronald and Nancy Reagan. It contains millions of documents, photographs, films and tapes. It also contains memorabilia and a permanent exhibit of Ronald Reagan's life.
The Berlin Wall Speech was delivered by United States President Ronald Reagan in West Berlin on June 12, 1987. The speech is commonly known by a key line from the middle part: "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" Reagan called for the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, to open the Berlin Wall, which had encircled West Berlin since 1961.
The 1976 Republican National Convention was a United States political convention of the Republican Party that met from August 16 to August 19, 1976, to select the party's nominees for president and vice president. Held in Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Missouri, the convention nominated President Gerald Ford for a full term, but only after narrowly defeating a strong challenge from former California Governor Ronald Reagan. The convention also nominated Senator Bob Dole from Kansas for vice president, instead of Vice President Nelson Rockefeller, who did not seek nomination for a full term. The keynote address was delivered by Tennessee Senator Howard Baker. Other notable speakers included Minnesota Representative Al Quie, retired Lieutenant Colonel and former Vietnam prisoner of war Raymond Schrump, former Democratic Texas Governor John Connally, Providence, Rhode Island mayor Vincent Cianci and Michigan Senator Robert P. Griffin. It is the last national convention by either of the two major parties to feature a seriously contested nomination between candidates.
A speechwriter is a person who is hired to prepare and write speeches that will be delivered by another person. Speechwriters are employed by many senior-level elected officials and executives in the government and private sectors. They can also be employed to write for weddings and other social occasions.
"We begin bombing in five minutes" is the last sentence of a controversial, off-the-record joke made by U.S. President Ronald Reagan in 1984, during the Cold War.
Kenneth L. Khachigian is an American political consultant, speechwriter, and attorney. He is best known for being a longtime aide to President Richard Nixon and chief speechwriter to President Ronald Reagan.
The bibliography of Ronald Reagan includes numerous books and articles about Ronald Reagan. According to J. David Woodard, a political science professor, more than 11,000 books on Reagan have been published.
This is the electoral history of Ronald Reagan. Reagan, a Republican, served as the 40th president of the United States (1981–1989) and earlier as the 33rd governor of California (1967–1975). At 69 years, 349 days of age at the time of his first inauguration, Reagan was the oldest person to assume the presidency in the nation's history, until Donald Trump was inaugurated in 2017 at the age of 70 years, 220 days. In 1984, Reagan won re-election at the age of 73 years, 274 days, and was the oldest person to win a US presidential election until Joe Biden won the 2020 United States presidential election at the age of 77 years, 349 days.
In 1980, Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush were elected president and vice president of the United States. They defeated the incumbent Democratic President Jimmy Carter and Vice President Walter Mondale.
Bently Thomas "Ben" Elliott is an American writer who served as President Ronald Reagan’s director of speechwriting from 1982 to 1986. In this capacity he directed better known speechwriters like Peggy Noonan and Peter Robinson, both of whom he hired.
President Ronald Reagan authorized the formation of his 1984 reelection campaign committee, Reagan-Bush '84, on October 17, 1983. He made the formal announcement of his candidacy for re-election on January 29, 1984. On August 23, 1984, he secured the nomination of the Republican Party at its convention in Dallas, Texas. The convention nominated Vice President George H. W. Bush as his running mate.
The 1976 presidential campaign of Jimmy Carter resulted in the election of Jimmy Carter and his running mate Walter Mondale as president and vice president of the United States, defeating incumbent Republican President Gerald Ford and his running mate Bob Dole. Carter, a Democrat and former governor of Georgia, launched his presidential bid in December 1974, as the Constitution of Georgia barred him from running for a second term as governor. In the wake of the Watergate scandal, the declining popularity of President Ford due to his pardon of Nixon, and the severe recession of 1974–75, many Democrats were sure of victory in the 1976 presidential election. As a result, 17 Democrats ran for their party's nomination in 1976. Carter's opponents mocked his candidacy by saying "Jimmy, who?", for his being relatively unknown outside Georgia. In response, Carter began saying "My name is Jimmy Carter, and I'm running for president." Carter extensively campaigned in the primaries, and in the end received 39.19% of his party's primary votes.