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What Did Ronald Reagan Do For The People ?
In 1980, Ronald Reagan won the nomination of the Republican Party. He selected George H.W. Bush as his running mate who a former CIA chief, congressman from Texas and an ambassador to the United Nations. Reagan won a landslide victory in the presidential election defeating the incumbent president Jimmy Carter. |
The going was not easy for Reagan. American industries were closing down as the demands from unions had become unmanageable. The factories were resorting to outsourcing their processes to foreign countries, who were willing to do it for cheaper costs and cheaper labor. Thousands and thousands of Americans were unemployed, and many of these became homeless.
Then there were federal policies like the Affirmative Action that tried to bring about gender and racial equality in America, especially in colleges and hiring at workplace. Plus drug addiction was at a all time high where it was being considered as an epidemic. This also had increased the crime rate in the US. As a result the prisons were overcrowded and there was a pandemic of HIV/AIDS.
Reagan dealt with all these issues in a very astute manner. He got the Congress to approve legislations that would give boost to the economy, reduce inflation, increase employment and enhance and strengthen the military might of the nation. He went about cutting taxes and reducing government expenditure. He did not stop increasing expenditure on defense even though it was leading to a massive fiscal deficit. He also waged a war against drugs.
By the time the election of 1984 was round the corner, Reagan's administration was showing results. The economy was growing and American military might was at its best. He had become popular, and he stood for re-election with George H.W. Bush as his running mate once again. This time his opponent was the former vice president Walter Mondale. Reagan won with a landslide victory.
In his second term, he formed an alliance with Britain. He knew that Soviet Union should be brought down. He did everything possible to bring down the Soviet Empire, including funding the anti-Soviet fighters in Afghanistan. Finally he got Mikhail Gorbachev, the General Secretary of the Communist Party to sign the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty in 1987. This allowed for both countries to destroy their intermediate nuclear warheads.
Basically Ronald Reagan is remembered for his economic reforms, which were conservative, and his success with the Cold War. He was instrumental in bringing back the honor and trust to the White House, which were heavily damaged with years of scandals and wars including Vietnam War, Watergate scandal and Pentagon Papers. Once again public started viewing the White House more favorably, and this was all because of Ronald Reagan.
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