Customer Reviews

Ronald Reagan: The Politics of Symbolism, With a New Preface

Before I had read this book,I hadn't understood Ronald Reagan's regency much. I can understand why he is still popular among not only American but also people all over the world. I am assured that he is one of American heroes. He is sincere, hearty, humorous, and powerful.

He faced a tangle of economic problems. The inflation, interest rates, and the projected federal deficit stood at nearly record highs, and unemployment was 7.4 percent. In this situation, he said,'government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.' How great that was! He worked out a plan for economic recovery, and promised lower taxes, business expansion, more jobs, less inflation, lower interest rates, smaller deficits, and greater military strength. He stuck to the plan and succeeded.

Now Japan has a big economic problems. Most of Japanese can't see Japan's future and their one. Reagan worked out the plan and kept to it not for government's benefit but for the national concerns. He certainly executed what he had said. I want Japan to follow his example.

I appreciate this work. I will recommend Japanese to read this.

Before I had read this book, I hadn't understood Ronald Reagan's regency much. I can understand why he is still popular among not only American but also people all over the world. I am assured that he is one of American heroes. He is sincere, hearty, humorous, and powerful.

He faced a tangle of economic problems. The inflation, interest rates, and the projected federal deficit stood at nearly record highs, and unemployment was 7.4 percent. In this situation, he said, 'government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.' How great that was! He worked out a plan for economic recovery and promised lower taxes, business expansion, more jobs, less inflation, lower interest rates, smaller deficits, and greater military strength. He stuck to the plan and succeeded!

Now Japan has a big economic problems. The national debt become grower, unemployment is higher.. Most of Japanese can't see Japan's future and their one. Reagan worked out the plan and kept to it not for government's benefit but for the national concerns. He certainly executed what he had said. I want Japanese government to follow his example.

I appreciate this work. I will recommend Japanese to read this.

Dallek's book makes great points about Reagan's legacy, even though it was written just four years into his Presidency. He points out the horrible legacy of the national debt, which grew by about $3 trillion during Reagan's watch. He points to the coming redistribution of wealth towadrs the wealthy and away from the middle and working class and poor. Statistics have shown that from 1979 to 1993 the top 20% saw 97% of the real increase in wealth, thus proving Dallek's beliefs. Dallek shows Reaganomics to be an anti-working class and anti-social and moral justice crusade dedicated to the old Republican views of Hoover and a slap in the face to dwindling moderation in the party, as portrayed by the great moderate Gerald Ford. Dallek shows Reagan to be an ideologue on foreign policy, whose 'zeal' for eliminatiing so-called 'waste' on programs for the poor does not translate into a zeal to eliminate true waste which affects the pockets of the wealthy arms dealers. Dallek shows Reagan's views to be uncaring and regressive and ultimately harmful to the progress of the past.

This is, to say the least, a great book. It began to show the injustice of Reaganomics, which saw the top income tax rate on the wealthy fall from 70% to 28% and payroll taxes on working individuals increase 7 separate times. Reagan ignored great issues - such as medical insurance reform, civil rights, urban issues, the environment, education and progressive social policies - and concentrated on tax reductions for the wealthy, a false foreign policy which portrayed a hollow Soviet empire as a true warrior and a regressive nature in regards to civil rights and economics. He also began a great scam, the forging of the modern religious right. Reagan, whose religious views were inactive at best, portrayed himself as a true fundamentalist in order to win over angry white fundamentalists, who were upset with scores in civil rights, women's rights and public activism. He won over millions of working class whites by telling them he was on 'their side' and not 'the other folks' side,' that is, on the side of the minorities. Yet, while he did this, he became the poster boy for the Chamber of Commerce - what a scam! To add insult to injury, he defeated in 1980 Democrat Jimmy Carter, a truly devoted evangelical Christian. Once again, what a scam!

As a true fan of real history, I appreciate this work. Republican ideologues today falsely paint Reagan as a great President, when in fact he was mediocre at best.

Dallek is one of the best out there. His books on LBJ and FDR are great, as is his work on the Presidents. For those who enjoyed his past work, I would highly recommend this one! This one comes with a great recommendation by the great historian James Mcgregor Burns.