The American Presidency: Ronald Reagan - Term Paper Example

? The American Presidency: Ronald Reagan Number) The American Presidency: Ronald Reagan Introduction Leadership is perhaps among the things that most defined man as one of the highest forms of beings in the world. Indeed, the ability to gather and organize people is what eventually led to the development of various civilizations that now define the modern world. The leadership of numerous individuals also made possible different changes that shaped and molded the history of different nations and of the whole world. One such example of a nation with rich history of leaders is the United States. In the modern society of the United States, the president is viewed as the greatest leader of the country. The US has had its share of its own leaders, from the first presidents and community heads, to today’s president, Barrack Obama. One of these leaders of the American nation who served as a president is Ronald Reagan. He has numerous contributions during his term, but one must objectively assess these contributions, so as to fully appreciate whether these contributions and achievements had any real impact or effect. In relation, this paper will then look into the said contributions and achievements of a US president, specifically Ronal Reagan. This paper will first present an overall look at the president’s biography, especially focusing on Reagan’s term as the president of the United States. Afterwards, this paper will then present a critical appraisal of the president’s contribution to the country, using the different criteria provided by different secondary literatures and resources. In here, different ratings or appraisals will be given to the president and his performance, based on the said literatures. In addition, after different individual grades, an overall grade or evaluation of former president Ronald Reagan will be presented. More importantly, this paper will attempt to prove that President Ronald Reagan can be given a grade of A-, based on his achievements and accomplishments, also including numerous issues, controversies, and problems that arose during his reign as president. Biography and Overview of President’s Administration Ronald Wilson Reagan was born on the 6th of February in 1911, in a second floor apartment in Tampico, Illinois, where his parents resided at the time. The young Reagan was then raised in Dixon, and he received his education at Eureka College, graduating with a degree of Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Economics.1 After he graduated, Reagan first went into the entertainment sector, wherein he served as a radio broadcaster in Iowa. He then moved to Los Angeles in 1937, where his career in the entertainment sector soared as he found roles for acting in films, and then television shows.2 Some of Reagan’s most notable films include Bedtime for Bonzo, Kings Row, All American, and numerous others. In the later years of his career as an actor, Reagan found himself serving as the president of the Screen Actors Guild. Later, he also became the spokesman for the company General Electric (GE), where history saw to the earlier beginnings of his political career.3 Reagan was originally a member and follower of the Democratic Party, but by the late 1950s, his positions started shifting rightward and by 1962, he transferred to the Republican Party. His most notable move to the political arena was seen when, after delivering a stirring speech in 1964 supporting the presidential candidacy of then candidate Barry Goldwater, his leadership potentials were noticed and then brought to the limelight. With this acknowledgement of his potentials, Reagan was then persuaded to run for the governorship. Two years later, he won the said California governorship, a position he won again in 1970.4 In 1968, he ran for presidential nomination as candidate for the Republican Party, but he lost, and again in 1976, he ran for the same nomination for presidential candidacy but was defeated. Finally, in 1980, he won the said nomination, and so with the general presidential election, defeating incumbent President Jimmy Carter.5 Thus began Reagan’s career as president of the United States of America. As president, Reagan instigated numerous initiatives and changes in the field of economics and politics. During the terms of the presidents before Reagan, the US’ economy was beginning to suffer a decline due to high inflation rates and high rates of unemployment. In fact, by the end of the term of Carter, the country’s inflation rate was 12.5%, and the unemployment rate was 5.4%. The changes Reagan instigated appear to have worked because by the end of his term in 1988, the inflation rate was 4.4% and the unemployment rate was reduced to only 5.4%. The aforementioned economic and political changes include supply-side economic policies, now popularly dubbed as “Reaganomics”, which involved the reduction of tax rates in order to stimulate and promote economic growth. Other changes he instigated include the control of money supply to bring down the inflation rates, the deregulation of the economy of the US, and the reduction of overall government spending. Reagan’s first term as president was marked by numerous darker occurrences, including an assassination attempt where he was rendered “close to death” during surgery but emerged stronger after almost ten days of hospitalization. Another event during his presidency is the strike conducted by the PATCO or Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization in 1981. The said organization violated a law prohibiting government offices and agencies from striking, but the organization believed that their work conditions needed much improvement, their workers needed better pay, and their system needing only a 32-hour, not 40-hour, workweek. Reagan demonstrated firmness in his resolve when, after giving an ultimatum to the strikers to return to work within 48 hours or they will be fired, he fired 11,345 air traffic controllers who had chosen to ignore his ultimatum. Still, another event that marred Reagan’s first term was the great number of deaths of American soldiers in Grenada, as well as the escalation of the Cold War. Still, despite the said troubles, Reagan was re-elected in a landslide victory in 1984, wherein he proclaimed that it was “Morning in America”, depicting the rise and progress of the American people and of the American economy. Reagan’s second term was marked greatly by foreign matters, and although he caused an escalation of the Cold War, he was able to end it through the support he provided to anti-communist movements around the globe and to the massive buildup of arms race against the USSR. His negotiations with Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev sealed the INF Treaty and led to the decrease in nuclear weapons for both of the countries. Other international affairs during his second term include the bombing of Libya in 1986, as well as the revelation of the Iran-Contra affair. Reagan left office in the year of 1989 and remained a significant public figure until his death in the 5th of June, 2004. Given the described achievements, a critical appraisal of Reagan’s presidency will then be conducted in the next section of this paper. Critical Appraisal of President Having established an overview of Reagan’s presidency, a judgment will then be conducted, based on the different ideas provided by varied secondary literatures. The first author who will serve as the basis for evaluation is the concept of presidency of the Founders and framers of the American presidency and politics. Some of these founders and framers include Locke, Hamilton, Jefferson, Patrick Henry, and others. Although these political leaders varied in their opinions and views on leadership and presidency, as revealed in their writings and communications with friends, they agreed on some key points in terms of the presidency. For one, the founders of the American regime highlighted the importance of the moral and civic virtue, or now more commonly termed as character, in the presidential leader. As discussed by Stripling, according to the Founders, the exploration of the best form of government is something that cannot be detached from the “question of the human nature, for it is in human nature that government has its origin”.6 Therefore, the limits of the nature of humans also limits the nature of politics. Through the understanding of the nature of man, a better understanding of the nature of today’s system of democracy can also be achieved. In this context, the Founders and Framers’ view of the presidency is also better understood. Based on the discussions of the different Founders and Framers provided by secondary literatures, it can be seen that Reagan grades around an A- to B+ in his presidency. This is for the reason that Reagan was able to meet a great percentage of what the founders described to be what the president is. For example, Reagan belonged to a “faction” or special interest group (party), which Publius presented as an important and inseparable aspect of liberty and human nature.7 In addition, another aspect of the presidency highlighted by the Founders is the energy in the executive, which is viewed as the definition of a good government. The Founders and framers also emphasized that the “president of the United States is not a public servant, [and that] he does not serve the pleasure of the people”.8 These last two descriptions of the presidency provided by the Founders and Framers was greatly demonstrated by Reagan, especially when he displayed his executive power and he refused to bow down to the demands of the union strike, choosing instead to fire around 11,000 air traffic controllers. Another significant author who provided a different view on the presidency is Woodrow Wilson, who discussed the constitutional government.9 According to the said author, the president is not simply a legal executive, whose only power is to veto the laws passed by the Congress but rather, he is the leader of his party, as well as the guide of the nation in legal action and in the national political purpose. Wilson also added that the president is the representative of community interest, and the author highlighted community interest to involve gold standard, limited tariffs, and limited governments. Based on the discussions of Wilson, Reagan can receive a grade of B+, since he was able to meet the descriptions of Wilson on what the president is, especially: although the president still functions as an executive, he has become more and more a political, and less an executive officer.10 Another author worth looking into is Richard E. Neustadt, who explored the politics of leadership from Roosevelt to Reagan, in his book Presidential Power and the Modern Presidents.11 According to the said author, the power of the president lies in his ability to persuade people, especially since the president is expected to perform and achieve things that are much more that his authority allows him to. Presidents also function through persuading the other branches of the government, but also especially the executive branch itself. This author highlighted that the president’s influence stems from his bargaining advantages, the expectations of those around him, and the estimates of how the public sees him. The president himself can affect the flow of power from these sources of influences, through the impact he has in his actions, words, choices, and numerous others.12 Thus, based on these descriptions, Reagan receives a score of A+ in his presidency because he was successfully able to become a man of influence and persuasion, especially during the early years of his tenure, when he was trying to instigate the political and economic changes associated with the Reaganomics. Moreover, another notable literature on the American presidency is one by Jeffrey K. Tulis, exploring the concept of rhetorical presidency.13 According to the concept of a rhetorical presidency, modern presidents have now become an agent whose worth is determined by the public, and not by those around him, including the members of the Congress. This somehow goes against the idea presented earlier by Neustadt, but the basic concept of persuasion is still in effect, although the target of the persuasion is now different. Indeed, Tulis discussed that instead of trying to influence the Congress, the presidents of the modern America now have to answer to the public, they are even expected to defend themselves publicly, and their most essential task has become to persuade and gain the support of the public for policy initiatives. In here, Reagan may have scored B- to C+, a score lower than his usual ones. This is for the reason that most of Reagan’s actions are focused on persuading the Congress, as well as his executive cabinet, and the demands of a great percentage of the people are often not noticed or, if not, put aside. Another author who looked into the presidency is James W. Caesar, who explored the concepts of demagoguery, statesmanship, and presidential politics.14 In his discussions, this author revealed that a great danger in the concept of the rhetorical president is that of demagoguery, wherein the president becomes a form of pseudo-popular leader whose influence comes from the widespread hopes, fears, envies and others given to him in his political position. In here, Reagan can be given a high A+, since he was able to somehow prevent himself from becoming a pseudo-popular leader. Indeed, he was not simply a poster boy of development, and although he may have used his popularity from his entertainment days to garner followers, he did not serve as some brainless popular idol out to get more fame and power. In addition, another author worth looking into is David K. Nichols, who explored the myth of the modern presidency.15 According to this author, the modern president is one whose power is ratified by the people and not prohibited by the legislative body. The author argues that modern presidency is something that has always been founded throughout history, and that the potential for the modern presidency was developed in the provisions of the Constitution itself. Ultimately, Nichols presents that the modern presidency is defined by the balance between executive power and limited popular government. Based on the discussions by Nichols, Reagan receives a score of B+, since in the scale of executive power and limited popular government, Reagan tipped more towards the side of the executive power. Finally, another author that explored the presidency is Stephen Skowronek, who looked into the politics that presidents make.16 This author attempted to debunk the arguments of Neustadt, and instead discussed that he implication that older presidents performed merely functions that are similar to those of a clerkship, is conceited for modern presidents. Skowronek then presented that it is not the president’s skill that determines his power, but rather his political identity. Based on the discussions of Skowronek, Reagan can be given a score of A-, since he was able to display much political identity, as well as integrity. Overall Historical Evaluation and Based on the different discussions presented in this paper, as well as the different arguments presented by the other cited authors, President Ronald Reagan can indeed be given an overall grade of A-, based on his achievements and accomplishments, also including numerous issues, controversies, and problems that arose during his reign as president. In fact, history itself will not be able to argue that Reagan has failed in his presidency, since overall, his accomplishments balance out the different issues and problems that arose during his terms as the president of the United States. References 1. Woodard, J. D., Ronald Reagan: a biography (Santa Barbara, Calif.: Greenwood, 2012). 2. Edwards, L., and Buckley, W. J., Ronald Reagan: a political biography (Boston; New York: Nordland, 1980). 3. Helfer, A., and Buccellato, S., Ronald Reagan: a graphic biography (New York: Hill and Wang, 2006). 4. Biographiq, Ronald Reagan - The Great Communicator (Biography) (Minneapolis, Minnesota: Filiquarian Pub. LLC, 2008). 5. Burgan, M., DK Biography: Ronald Reagan (London: DK Pub, 2010). 6. Stripling, S. R., “The Founders' View of Character and the Presidency”, Leadership University, last modified July 13, 2002, accessed April 12, 2012, http://www.leaderu.com/humanities/foundersview.html. 7. Stripling, The Founders’ View, n.p. 8. Stripling, The Founders’ View, n.p. 9. Wilson, Woodrow. “Constitutional Government.” Lecture Notes, Master of American History and Government, Teaching American History (TAH), January 18, 2012. 10. Wilson, Constitutional Government, p. 67. 11. Neustadt, R. E., The Power to Persuade. In Presidential Power and the Modern Presidents (pp. 29-49), (New York: Free Press, 1991). 12. Neustadt, Presidential Power, p. 150. 13. Tulis, J. K., The Rhetorical Presidency, (Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1988). 14. Ceaser, J. W. Demaguguery, Statesmanship and presidential Politics. In J. Bessette, & J. K. Tulis, The Constitutional Presidency (pp. 247-289), (Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press, 2006). 15. Nichols, D. K., The Myth of the Modern Presidency, (University Park, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1994). 16. Skowronek, S., The Politics Presidents Make, (London, England: Harvard University Press, 1993). Read More