Reagan didn't exactly reinvigorate the conservative movement for very long. The party has changed since 2000, which means that he may have helped the party for just over a decade, but that's about it. It seems to me that they peaked in 1994, and have been slowly losing power ever since, primarily due to (what else) corruption. Unfortunately this happens to all majority parties if they are in power too long, no matter if they are the GOP or the DNC. The DNC lost power in 1994 because of corruption, and the GOP lost it in 2006 because of corruption, complacency, and the most unpopular war since Vietnam.

 

Because of Reagan you had a Democrat President like Clinton who moved to the right on many issues and you started getting more conservative Democrats especially on economic issues.

 

Reagan had a big influence on American Politics.

 

Not that I am a fan.

 

 

This is my point exactly. Love him or hate him. Its the same argument I make for FDR, I'm definitely not a fan of his policies, but you can't deny that he had a tremendous impact on American politics and economic structure and as such he has to be a notable president.

yeah but fdr was president during an actual war...so because reaganomics will steer america into its own path of destruction through powerful corporations...i cannot in good faith call mr reagan anything but a solid actor and an alright president...but hey...at least he also paved the way for the bush dynasty to ruin the good american name and helped us feed into our dependency on oil...oh yeah...reagan...i know you are dead, and even if you werent, you wouldnt remember this...but no one cared during the DARE classes...no one...nice try though...A for effort

Paved the way for the Bush legacy? Unless your referring to the fact that his most potent enemies in the Republican party at the time were George H.W. Bush and Dick Cheney, and both eventually made it to top spots, then yea he did pave the way for the bush legacy. But George W. is the anti-Reagan if anything.

yeah but fdr was president during an actual war...

I would argue that the "Cold War" was the toughest war to win. Say what you want, the man did what Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, and Carter were unable to do. If you had told someone in the 1950's that the US and Russia would be allies within their lifetime, they would have ratted you out as a commie sympathizer to Joe McCarthy!

 

You also have to respect his political savy [he won 49/50 states in his reelection campaign?!] and amazing abilities as an orator.

yeah but fdr was president during an actual war...

I would argue that the "Cold War" was the toughest war to win. Say what you want, the man did what Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, and Carter were unable to do. If you had told someone in the 1950's that the US and Russia would be allies within their lifetime, they would have ratted you out as a commie sympathizer to Joe McCarthy!

 

You also have to respect his political savy [he won 49/50 states in his reelection campaign?!] and amazing abilities as an orator.

but not having to write mothers of thousands of dead soldiers is a much easier gig than having to...look at how the civil war aged lincoln, and ww2 at least finished off fdr...and the toll that vietnam took on all the weasel politicians in our government...its much much more difficult to win an actual war...all the cold war presidents had to do was continue the build up...weapons, tanks, battleships, state of the art air force, nukes, nukes and more nukes...and since all these military needs and weapons are created all over the country, no one would dare argue that the build up was a bad thing...personally...i feel as if communism was bound to die on it's own and that reagan kinda lucked into the position...dont get me wrong...he still did a fine job of taking advantage of the luck given to him...and i do as well agree that he was very savy...he was a mix between stern and sly as a politician...and he was a great speaker...maybe the best in last 50 years...and only less charasmatic than jfk was within the last 60 years...but personality and luck doesnt make you a great president...and i cant see how one would ever say he is the best president of all time

i cant see how one would ever say he is the best president of all time

Me neither. But he is certainly near the top. I, personally, can't see how someone could say he was a middle of the pack or lower President. That's the only reason I even jumped in to the conversation.

 

Carry on!

I agree with most of it. However, I still think that U.S. Grant was our worst president ever.

 

 

Warren Harding was much worse than U.S. Grant. Grant was a good man who surrounded himself with currupt men. Warren Harding was currupt himself.

President Harding was never implicated in the Teapot Dome scandal.