REAGAN: THE LIFE PDF, EPUB, EBOOK

H. W. Brands | 816 pages | 11 Jun 2015 | Random House USA Inc | 9780385536394 | English | New York, United States Ronald Reagan - Wikipedia

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Retrieved August 13, — via The Times's print archive. Reagan: A Life In Letters. September 16, August 23, Retrieved August 12, April 25, April 15, United Nations. Consortium for Independent Journalism. Retrieved April 1, January 1, Reagan met Nancy Davis Nancy Reagan , a relatively unknown actress, at a dinner party in , and the two were married in a simple ceremony in , at which actor William Holden was best man. The Reagans appeared together in the war movie Hell Cats of the Navy in After his acting career began to decline in the s, Reagan became the host of a television drama series, General Electric Theater , as well as spokesman for the General Electric Company. In the latter capacity he toured GE plants around the country, delivering inspirational speeches with a generally conservative, pro-business message. Article Contents. Print print Print. Table Of Contents. Facebook Twitter. Give Feedback External Websites. 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Average rating 4. Rating details. More filters. Sort order. Start your review of Reagan: The Life. May 15, Jeffrey Keeten rated it really liked it Shelves: presidents-staff. But this was exactly wrong. He believed what Americans have always wanted to believe about their country, and he made them believe it too. People disagree with him. People hate his politics. People me even believe he broke the law, but at the end of the day he really believed in America, and he revived some faith in the office of President The Republican party has been searching for the next Reagan ever since he left office in They have not succeeded. Reagan was as conservative philosophically as Goldwater, but his sunny mien made Americans feel good about themselves and their country and made him irresistible at the polls. I had someone who worked for me who said he voted for George W. Candidates with shorter times in office, and thus fewer opportunities to go on the record, fare better, like Barack Obama. Reagan had a good working relationship with all the world leaders. As you can see they formed their own superteam. Reagan had had very few contacts with Soviet officials and still tended to base many of his judgments more on generalities, even slogans, than on a nuanced understanding of Soviet reality. His summit meetings with Mikhail Gorbachev regarding the reduction of the nuclear arsenals of both countries was frustrating to read. Gorbachev might be the most progressive leader ever seen to rise to power in Russia or the Soviet Union. He was convinced that changes needed to happen, and his first order of business was to end the cold war before it broke his country. His predecessors Chemenko, Andropov, and Brezhnev, who all died shortly after getting into office, would have never considered making the broad stroke changes that Gorbachev was proposing. Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev Gorbachev wanted Reagan to keep his Strategic Defense Initiative SDI , so famously called Star Wars, in the lab for ten years, but Reagan refused, even though the experts felt they were longer than ten years away from trying to deploy any part of it in space anyway. The two leaders walked away without a deal. It was a real missed opportunity. Gorbachev ended the Cold War, not Ronald Reagan. Reading this book brought me a much better understanding of Nancy Reagan, maybe even giving me a slightly more positive view of her. Every day of her life was devoted to her husband. She would do anything to make sure he was successful. This at times made her very vindictive. She had a very good reason, as it turns out, to be paranoid about his safety even before John Hinkley Jr. I was hoping when I decided to read this book that H. Brands would be discussing the Iran-Contra Affair in detail. I can remember watching Colonel Oliver North in front of congress. I even rooted for him, admiring this one man who had been selected as the fall guy, standing up to the significant power of congress. He was a soldier following orders. The Israelis put the difference in a secret bank account. Then our Col. North gave the money to the Contras. Even Reagan was deposed after he left office, and it is painful to watch. His number never really recovered until many years later when people remembered how good he made them feel about being Americans more than they remembered the times he had stumbled. I loved the way H. Brands talked about the fickleness of politics. The points in an administration when one thing going right or one thing going wrong can make a huge difference. And he did so at just the right time for Reagan. If Volcker had taken charge of the fed two years earlier, the economy might have improved sufficiently that Carter and not Reagan would have been elected in If Volcker had arrived two years later, the recession that routed the Republicans in the elections could have swept Reagan from office in He was the model for the perfect grandfather that everyone knows they can go to for comfort and encouragement. He had a wonderful sense of humor and was a master at putting everyone at ease. No one who worked with him wanted to disappoint him. Though our oldest president in age, he brought an energy and a sense of infinite possibility to every speech he gave. Thinking of the speech he gave after the Challenger incident reminds me that he was also capable of expressing tenderness in a way that made all of us feel he was grieving with us. The fact that he was an actor did not contribute to his success as president as much as I believe the time he spent as a sports radio announcer. He had to think on his feet and developed a real sense of how best to keep people entertained while sitting behind that microphone. Reagan behind the microphone If he is the model for future presidents, then the role of president will have to change. In some ways maybe it already has. Reagan was not cerebral, but he had the same ability as his hero Franklin Roosevelt to communicate through more than just words, through inflections and pauses to convey a sense of well being in the face of calamity. Going forward I can see the people that a president surrounds himself will be ever more important. View all 29 comments. Sep 27, Matt rated it it was amazing Shelves: audiobook. In another thrilling political biography, I turn my head to a man who is said to have shaped 20th century America for both his politics and ideological stances through the waning years of the Cold War. Ronald Wilson Reagan was a man of many experiences, from a poor childhood through to the honeymoon years after leaving office, as effectively illustrated by H. Reagan wore his ideological tilt on his sleeve, next to his heart, which moved from one end of the spectrum to the other. Brands In another thrilling political biography, I turn my head to a man who is said to have shaped 20th century America for both his politics and ideological stances through the waning years of the Cold War. Brands depiction of Reagan in three distinct periods, from daunting Democrat to rigid Republican through to charismatic conservative, exemplifies the progression the man made throughout his life. With no firmly rooted politics in his familial background, it is a wonder that Reagan became synonymous with the neo-conservative movement of the late 20th century and could be called one of America's great political figures. Brands does a masterful job in detailing the life and times of Reagan, leaving little to wonder for the reader keen on learning about this political giant. That Reagan first identified himself as a Democrat should be no surprise to the reader. Raised in a lower income family in Illinois, Reagan was forced to help bring bread to the table and handle the plight of an alcoholic father on whom few could rely. Brands does not belabour this point, but moves Reagan through his formative years by discussing the hardships that Reagan met, but which did not impede his personal successes. While he had high ambitions, Reagan settled into a smaller religious college and tried to carve out a niche on the football field, as horrid as he came to be. It was during these years that Reagan became a strong believer in Roosevelt's New Deal and praised its ability to help Americans. Pushing for a hands-on approach, Reagan stumped for Roosevelt's plan and saw benefit in ensuring the state could assist those who could not stay afloat on their own. After college and ready to contribute to the world, Reagan was soon pulled into the world of radio, taking jobs reporting sporting events and relying on his dramatic abilities to spin tales to those who tuned in. He was a man of the people and remained so, even after making his mark in Hollywood, where he became a household name. Though he seemed successful, as Brands shows through detailed narration, he was no Jimmy Stewart or John Wayne, though was able to use his abilities to pad his pockets effectively. With the move towards better representation and the creation of the Screen Actors Guild SAG , Reagan rose and soon became its president, making that his busiest role while living in Hollywood. However, with this intense analysis of Hollywood as a home for Communist sentiment, Reagan began to look for work outside of the big screen, becoming a key spokesman for General Electric. He spoke about the merits of the company to its employees at all the plants, perfecting a message that kept management happy and the employees in touch with the bosses. It is here that Brands shows the turning of Reagan's views, if slightly, away from the hands-on Democrat approach towards a more socially conscious and conservative set of values, perfect for the softer wing of the Republican Party, which he joined in , and became a political icon in With many years as a well-known and daunting Democrat, this turn opened eyes and minds to the persuasive nature of Reagan's message. The rigidity of his Republican ways took a great deal of time, but Brands plants the seed in Reagan's life around and lets it germinate. While on his General Electric speaking circuit, Reagan spoke out in favour of Republican candidate Barry Goldwater on the Arizona senator's fated presidential campaign. This sparked notice of Reagan by the political right, even if he cozied to its softer wing. Reagan gained political momentum and chose to run for Governor of California in , unseating Pat Brown on a platform of reform and fiscal tightening. Reagan headed into office and sought to balance that which was crooked in California, with Vietnam heating up and the 'flower child' movement in full-swing. Brands highlights Reagan's push to quash protests and subvert university students, representing the parental era and speaking out for a generation. His firm beliefs in Roosevelt's New Deal were curtailed for tighter sentiments on spending and the need to close the pursestrings to those seeking handouts. When Nixon won the presidency, a fellow Californian, Reagan sought to push his control of the most populist state to his favour, seeking a firm stance on both coasts. Alas, Nixon spoke like a conservative, but acted weakly, leaving Reagan to harden his own views. It was after Reagan served two gubernatorial terms that he sought to inject himself into the national stage again, not from Sacramento, but as a candidate for president. He felt Nixon bumbled his way through Republican control of the White House and insisted that Ford proved inept to handle the pressures of the job. Brands illustrates a wonderful battle during the primary season, which saw a sitting president seriously challenged for the Party's nomination. Had Reagan played his cards right, he might have toppled Ford. Even in his loss, Reagan illustrated that he was no longer the SAG President who held soft views on the arts and promoted the Welfare State. America was seeing a transformation of this man, preparing for another run at the top job. While never timid, Reagan's rigidity within the Republican Party might serve him well as he looked towards , with a micromanager running the show at Pennsylvania Avenue. Reagan's neo-conservative leanings did not arise upon his receiving the keys to the White House, as Brands exemplifies throughout the book. While the man who entered the presidency differed greatly from his self, Reagan used his time as Governor of California and the years he sought to win the Republican nomination to harden his shell. His views seemed unerring, though, as he waded through the liberal and somewhat opaque fiscal quagmire left for him, with deficits exponentially higher than anything he'd seen in Sacramento. Reagan attacked this, as he had on the campaign trail, by pushing through cuts in taxes and promised slashes to program funding in the early years of his first mandate, though Brands correctly points out that these reductions were not implemented simply because he sought them, some requiring committee and sub-committee votes. However, he sought to take the burden off the hands of Americans and let them spend their money in a more free-spirited manner. These struggles with a Democratic Congress did not prove daunting for Reagan, who held firm and pushed as far as possible, negotiating only to ensure his key tenets were met. Reagan's other strong-willed agenda item, which could be placed in a conservative column was the eradication of worldwide communism and a means of containing the Soviet influence on the world. Brands illustrates numerous attempts by Reagan to contain the Soviet approach, both through direct communication with Moscow and funding or directing support for groups to counter socialist movements in the Americas and Africa. This unwavering stance permeates the narrative from onwards, as Reagan worked through numerous Soviet leaders and a score of countries with socialist movements brewing or running sovereign governments. That Reagan would not back down cannot be downplayed or even ignored, for it did place America in hot water and Reagan on the verge of being impeached in the latter part of his second mandate. Reagan would not, however, bow to communism as his predecessors had, or adopt a strong sense of detente. It was a 'wage the ideological war or bust' mentality that summed up his two terms in office. Reagan did just that, culminating with numerous meetings with Mikhail Gorbachev, where he softened the General Secretary up enough to bring about meaningful and lasting change to the Cold War and ideological stand-off between the two spheres. Looking liberals in the eye and refusing to budge, Reagan sought to bring America out of the doldrums of spending and tighten the purse strings as a charismatic conservative, asking Americans if they wanted prosperity or pork. Most chose to forego a trip to the trough. Brands' fluid narrative and short chapters make the biography flow more effectively than some other political or presidential pieces I have read beforehand. By chopping events up into smaller pieces, rather than massive themes, the story is less daunting and allows the reader to digest things in a manner that better suits them. These were formative years in America and there is no need to slam it all into massive chapters, which keeps the reader drowning without the chance for a substantive break. Brands also utilises an effective use of multiple sources to illustrate a point or an event, offering opinions that may differ from Reagan's own, rather than spoon-feeding the reader the views by the Gipper alone. This fleshes out events and permits an internal debate within the reader's mind, permitting an evolution of ideas and opinions, while still leaving the final choice in the hands of the reader. Effective use of sources, views, and opinions only further substantiates the strength of the piece. Brands also highlights some of the key events in Reagan's life, while providing important backstories to help flesh-out the full picture. From the testimony at the HUAC to the assassination attempt and the Iran-Contra Affair, Reagan's role therein is undeniable, though the build-up is also essential in determining the true thread of the story. Brands does that and keeps the reader feeling informed during the progression. Actors come to life and their roles are interwoven into Reagan's life seamlessly as Brands progresses through even the densest of times. Kudos Mr. Brands for this stellar piece of work. I have new-found respect for the man, his politics, and the life he shaped without ever selling out to those around him. View all 4 comments. Feb 04, Cora rated it it was ok. Ronald Reagan left office 26 years ago this past January, and it's weird that it's taken this long for him to get the attention of the regular Great Men of American History biographers. In part this has to be due to the disastrous reception of Edmund Morris' DUTCH, partially fictionalized after Morris confessed that he couldn't truly understand Reagan. In part this is because critic Ronald Reagan left office 26 years ago this past January, and it's weird that it's taken this long for him to get the attention of the regular Great Men of American History biographers. Brands has finally made the attempt, and hopefully this will open the door a little bit. Reagan is famously friendly at a distance, so aloof that staffers would come and go without him noticing; that he failed to recognize his own son Michael at his high school graduation; that he blithely skipped Michael's wedding in Hawaii to attend that of Tricia Nixon's, happening the same day; so aloof that even Nancy Reagan confessed that although she got closer than anyone else, there was part of himself that even she didn't get to see. And yet Brands is at his strongest talking about Reagan as a man. Reagan's letters, particularly before his political career, are fairly revealing, whether Reagan is complaining to Jack Warner about a film shoot in London or reflecting on love and sexuality to a childhood friend. I found many aspects to Reagan that were likeable and sympathetic. Brands' assessment of Reagan's political career has a little bit for everybody. For conservatives, Brands is happy to award the victory of the Cold War to Reagan. Reagan was fond of linking himself with Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and of co-opting FDR's rhetoric for right-wing purposes, and Brands concludes that Reagan was a mirror-universe FDR, as instrumental in ushering in a conservative era as FDR was in ushering in a liberal era, and as influential overseas. But is this true? Take the Cold War claim to begin with. Brands claims that Reagan ended the Cold War and prompted the collapse of the Soviet Union, with the partnership of Gorbachev. That's like saying that Lord Palmerston freed the slaves in America with the partnership of Abraham Lincoln. Brands doesn't bother to show that Reagan's defense build-up caused the Soviet economic crisis, and in fact quotes Reagan saying as late as that the defense build-up was necessary because the Soviets were winning the arms race. And if the Soviets were already bankrupting themselves with military hardware, like Reagan claimed at the time, then his defense buildup wasn't necessary to prompt the crisis. And that's leaving aside the drop in oil prices in the late 80s which historically has meant bad news for oil producers like the USSR. But let's accept provisionally that this is a fair conclusion. Regimes can endure economic stagnation for a long time without collapsing. The Soviet Union fell due to internal political forces that were set in motion by Gorbachev, not anybody from the outside. Gorbachev also made the crucial decision not to use force to keep countries behind the Iron Curtain. A reactionary Soviet leadership determined to hold on to the status quo might well have held on despite anything that America did in response. And if we're not so myopic as to give the current American president credit for everything happening on planet earth, then Reagan's foreign policy legacy seems a lot less substantial. It was to his credit that he pivoted towards arms reduction in his second term, and that he rebuilt good relations with the Soviets even concluding that it was no longer an 'evil empire. On domestic policy, Brands' interpretation also claims too much. But it seems worth mentioning that over the next few decades, the deductions were added back in, the capital gains rate was cut, and the upper tax rate was raised. Reagan also signed an immigration bill that Brands hails as landmark--and yet despite promises made at the time, the enforcement provisions in that bill failed to prevent ten-plus million people from immigrating to this country illegally since that bill was sign. Reagan did succeed at cutting taxes, and the tax rates have never risen as high as they were during the Carter administration. Conservative critics of Reagan claimed at the time that supporting tax cuts without spending cuts was a mistake because tax cuts are what make spending cuts politically palatable. Thirty years on, it seems that this critique didn't go far enough: during the Bush Jr. And yet you won't hear much about structural deficits in H. Brands' take on the Reagan presidency. You also won't hear much on financial de-regulation, despite the savings and loan crisis that spawned from Reagan-era decisions and its obvious relevance for the present; nor much on the war on drugs; and AIDS gets as much attention as Nancy Reagan's relationship with Raisa Gorbacheva. There's a revealing moment early in the book: Brands alludes to allegations by nuclear-freeze advocates that the administration's arms-control stance, the 'zero option', was chosen to alienate the Soviets and forestall arms control negotiations. What he doesn't mention is that this is true-- Richard Perle proposed the stance to Reagan because it required Soviets to remove existing missiles while the US would only promise not to install potential missiles. He might also have mentioned that Reagan didn't understand this distinction. I call this revealing because it goes to another odd choice of emphasis in the book. Many people involved in the Reagan administration describe how chaotic it was, how Reagan's decisions were rarely clear, how lower-level staffers and aides drove their own agenda without Reagan knowing to intervene. Occasionally Brands spins this as a positive Reagan knew what to focus on, he says , but as the zero option instance shows, Reagan often didn't understand his own key initiatives as well. He was deeply concerned about Nicaragua, but didn't realize that the State Department was pursuing negotiations while the CIA was mining the harbors--nor did the CIA or the State Department know what the other was doing. He didn't understand many of the important provisions in his first budget, which was a key part of Reaganonomics. I don't believe that Ronald Reagan was stupid, but that perception didn't come from nowhere. I came to believe that HW Brands is a genre author, that genre being Great Man of History biographies, and in a sense his decisions on how to portray Reagan are driven by genre restrictions. So Reagan must be clear-eyed and decisive, and he has to stand astride the world like a colossus, because he's our protagonist and that's how the story works. Brands has said that this is the last in an informal six volume history of the United States through biographies--including Franklin, Jackson, Grant, Teddy Roosevelt, FDR, and now Reagan--and that informs his approach to history. The problem, particularly in the case of Reagan, is that it obscures far more than it illuminates. There's much about Reagan's legacy that you'll never know from reading this book. Sep 20, Steve rated it really liked it. Brands was published in Brands is a professor at the University of Texas, a prolific author and a two-time Pulitzer finalist. He has written nearly thirty books on a wide range of historical topics including biographies of Andrew Jackson, Ulysses Grant, Theodore Roosevelt and FDR each of which I have previously read and reviewed. The first full-scale biography of Reagan in over a decade, this page book contains chapters organized into seven major sections. Very few presidential biographies of comparable length are this easy to read. But the narrative sweeps too briskly through his childhood — about a page per year — moderating somewhat when the aspiring actor moves to Hollywood. It is clear from the outset that Brands is friendly to his subject, but he seems intent on maintaining a sense of balance throughout the text. The reader is seldom unaware of the economic, political or social backdrop associated with moments described in this book. But he sometimes provides so much context that Reagan becomes peripheral to the narrative. First, the authior often injects lengthy quotations and portions of transcripts into the narrative. This can be distracting on its own, but since he has a penchant for letting Reagan speak for Reagan, it often leaves an impression that Brands is just observing rather than analyzing and critiquing. This biography is generously replete with stories, anecdotes and on-the-scene reporting. But few of these tales will break new ground for readers familiar with Reagan. Finally, despite its impressive length this book feels surprisingly light and fails to provide as many penetrating observations and keen perspectives as I would have expected from Brands. Overall, H. It is fast-moving and remarkably engaging, but often proves a better history text than biography. And for all its merit, this book never quite delivers the richly-hued and penetrating portrait of Reagan it seems to promise. View 1 comment. Jan 04, Carmen Blankenship rated it it was amazing Shelves: memoirs , netgalley. President Reagan took office when I was in elementary school and I heard his name often in my household. My father was very conservative something I didn't realize until I was older and the words that my father used to describe President Reagan was "Finally". This is an exceptional book about an exceptional man. I would highly recommend to everyone, regardless if you are a fan of President Reagan's politics. A huge thank you to Negalley and Double Day books for the advanced copy in exchange fo President Reagan took office when I was in elementary school and I heard his name often in my household. A huge thank you to Negalley and Double Day books for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. Jun 25, Roger DeBlanck rated it it was amazing Shelves: non-fiction. It chronicles all the essentials: his upbringing with an alcoholic father, his start in radio, his years in Hollywood, and his subsequent political career and rise to the presidency. The depth and range of the narrative make it impressive, yet it is compulsively readable. What I take away most from his study is that Reagan was a leader of great conscience, faith, caring, and fierce, undaunted determination. To complement his charm and humor, he also had an ability to listen to all sides of an issue. As president, he did more to reform taxes and cut government spending than anyone before him. He offset these domestic challenges with his greatest foreign policy mission: to stare down communism and bring about its demise. Brands does not let Reagan slide on his failure to know what happened. Even though compassion for the hostages allowed him to go down a dangerous route of negotiating with a terrorist state like Iran, he still tried to look at his decision as the right option, despite its clear setbacks. Whatever adversity or dilemma he faced, Reagan took solace in his unwavering optimism that something positive would eventually emerge from the chaos. He was right most of the time, and he eventually won out in the hearts of Americans. Brands does an excellent job of capturing the momentousness of the long life of Ronald Reagan. This is a very uneven book. It has two parts - one very good and one horrible. It is a mix of some very interesting extended direct quotes from Ronald Reagan and a uneven portrayal of a lot that made Reagan a great president. Let me offer some examples. Soon after WWII HUAC began a series of hearings on infiltration of communists into what we would now call the media concentrating on film but also including other industries that were related. As a part of the hearings and as a leader of the Screen Actors Guild, Reagan testified. The clear evidence with several decades of history behind them is that a there were some people in the entertainment industry as well as other industries that were trying to actively subvert the United States and aid Russia; and b The Hollywood 10, who may or may not have been part of the subversives, saw this as a political opportunity they thought they could win, which was a huge misjudgment. His extensive quotation of the testimony of John Howard Lawson one of the 10 shows that they were not really victims of an unfair system - they tried at least Lawson did to set themselves up. From my view the Committee was at times heavy handed but still had a reason to act and Reagan handled himself quite honorably. A second example comes from the discussion of the development of the Economic Recovery Tax Act and his subsequent efforts in tax reform. Two things stand out. Stockman and I were Congressional staffers before he went to the Administration and I thought he was bright but quite self absorbed. His conversations which resulted in the William Greider Atlantic article the Education of David Stockman show that Stockman, like many young staffers in DC cared a lot more about preening his own image than in doing the job he was hired to do. As ERTA developed in the legislative process, its key features were delayed - so the revenue curve was slowed - although out year receipts were actually higher than expected. But combined with the increase in military spending which ultimately proved productive against the Soviets and the unwillingness of members of congress to meaningfully reduce spending created the problems of the deficits. So Reagan was successful in simplifying the tax code and at the same time not as successful in balancing the budget. In , when the recession continued and revenues were not yet piling in Reagan reluctantly agreed to what was called the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act, which scaled back some of the excesses like Accelerated Cost Recovery - ACRS that congress added to the rate reduction. Reagan successfully held on to the rate reductions of ERTA. Again, the Administration agreed to raise some revenues in exchange for reductions in spending and again the congressional leadership failed to follow through on the expenditure reductions in a meaningful way. Brands seems to characterize Reagan as an aloof policy maker who only got the big picture. That is simply untrue. Critics yammered about how the Act would not work - but the evidence was that it worked quite well - producing significant upturns in growth for more than a decade. A book like Showdown at Gucci Gulch - shows the deep involvement of Reagan in getting the discussions started and in enlisting an odd group of supporters to push the final result. At one point Brands claims that the economic growth in the s was a result of the Clinton era tax increases. While I understand the argument it is wrong. The forces of growth during the s came about as a result of a couple of forces, including the fall of the soviets encouraged by Reagan policies and the resulting peace dividend and finally the unleashing of capital a result of tax policies in ERTA and TRA. The book tells a story of George Schultz putting together a briefing on the budget for Reagan when he was governor. Schultz commented that Reagan was quite knowledgable about the budget process. His management style was different than predecessor, who was reputed to be concerned with who played on the White House tennis courts. But his mark of leadership was clearly there. In one incident Reagan had decided to fire his secretary of state, Al Haig who was one of those Washington DC fixtures more concerned with his own image than doing his job. He called Haig to his office and handed him an unsealed envelope which contained a letter from the President thanking him for his service and accepting a resignation which had not yet been proffered. Before Haig could get back to Foggy Bottom to write his letter - Reagan had identified and secured a replacement George Schultz. Reagan believed fundamentally in delegation so he could work on the big picture, but I think that was a conscientious decision not a failing. The final chapter is the most disappointing. Brands seems to conclude that all of Reagan's successes were the result of being there when other leaders took up the issue. So for example Brands would argue that the economic growth that started under his watch were the result of Volker's actions at the fed. But the president was wiling to take the heat and indeed some serious losses in the elections to allow Volker's policies to take effect. He spends a lot of time on Reagan's efforts at arms reduction. It is clear that Reagan held his own quite well against the Russians. His one on one discussions with Gorbachev were almost unprecedented in the President's willingness to work without the extensive staff preparation that most presidents rely upon. But Brands discounts that in the final chapter by concluding that we got arms reduction because of Gorbachev. That may be a conventional view of the left - but I think it is wrong. I would recommend this book just for his extensive use of quotations of Reagan. But I would be cautious about accepting Brands' editorializing about Reagan's strengths and weaknesses. The picture he paints with the quotes is contradicted by his biases in interpretation. Apr 12, Mark Mortensen rated it really liked it Shelves: biography , presidential. Through flowing chapters H. Brands puts forth a comprehensive account of our 40th U. President Ronald Wilson Reagan. Over two terms of any president one can find positive and negative aspects. Brands tone and observations seemed to be slightly critical of the president, while for the record I have always regarded Reagan as one of our greatest presidents. On a personal side Reagan was exceptionally devoted to his second wife Nancy however he was often a distant father to his four children Through flowing chapters H. On a personal side Reagan was exceptionally devoted to his second wife Nancy however he was often a distant father to his four children. As Commander in Chief, Reagan stood firm in his belief of a strong military defense and openly appreciated the service of our veterans. He sought to expand individual freedom and always took a firm stance against communism and socialism. The former Hollywood actor known as the great communicator knew the power of words. Throughout his presidency Reagan, a Republican, sought to limit the size of federal government. His efforts to reduce spending met strong resistance from another popular Irish descendent, the Democratic Speaker of the House Thomas P. I was sad to see there was no mention of the historic Grace Commission Report that President Reagan presented to Congress in Peter Grace, a conservative democrat, to head an independent citizen group of prominent business professionals and community leaders with the charge of identifying government waste and inefficiency. Congress ignored the detailed page Grace Commission Report because over the past decades legislators have thrived on spending money without constraints. In his day Mr. Our younger generation should comprehend this appeal by Reagan over 30 years ago as if implemented it would have set a strong foundation to control our current national debt. View all 3 comments. Sep 05, YourLovelyMan rated it it was amazing Shelves: u-s- presidential-bios , pages-plus. To the biographer, this poses the challenge of crafting a narrative that is politically unbiased but historically accurate, without losing sight of the subject's importance. Fortunately, in Reagan: the Life, Brands has successfully done just that. Leaving no issue untouched, Reagan: the Life is a sympathetic but exacting and fair portrait of the late President. Brands outlines every aspect of Reagan's lif A generation out, the partisan dust hasn't quite settled around the GOP giant Ronald Reagan. Brands outlines every aspect of Reagan's life in this volume. We see his personal relationships, Hollywood career, rise in politics, successes and setbacks in the White House, and what Reagan himself would call the sunset of his life. In the end, Brands concludes with a brief synopsis of Reagan's legacy. In his personal relationships, we see a strong mother and an alcoholic father. We see the marriage to Jane Wyman, which seemed to begin and end without much of a bang. We see his relationship with Nancy, which seemed much stronger he didn't like to be away from her too long; she worried about him and was a constant source of support. And we see a glimpse of his relationship with his children, which, he regretted, was lacking. Politically we see a rising star who knew how to charm a crowd but also knew the issues surprisingly well. And because he lived it, we see the rise and fall of the New Deal Order. The author notes that Americans in the s had good reason to support big government--it ended the depression and the war. Yet Reagan found a pro-business, anti- government voice riding the coat tails of Barry Goldwater, and apparently his optimism took him farther than Goldwater's us-and-them rage. Any common criticism of Reagan will be found in these pages, including his opposition to the Civil Rights Act, near silence on AIDS, and support for the apartheid government in South Africa. Granted, they are frequently explained sympathetically, and the last of these gets less than half a page. Much more space is devoted to the Iran-Contra Affair, with the author concluding that Reagan probably did not know about the underlying crimes, but had plenty of reason to be suspicious and buried his head in the sand. Regarding Cold War policies, I would have liked to read more about what SDI actually entailed--an overly simple explanation being space lasers designed to shoot down missiles. Cold War historians seem to focus more on SDI as a bargaining chip in the Gorbachev negotiations than the technology itself, probably because that's ultimately the only role it served, having never been deployed. My sense of these people is that they don't have any respect for the public at large. They have a revolutionary mindset. I think they feel that anything they can do to prevail — lie, cheat, whatever — is justified by their revolutionary aims" and that he feared Bush was "hijacking" his father's reputation. Bush by Ron Reagan" [14] for Esquire. He voted for Democratic candidate John Kerry in the presidential election. Reagan endorsed then-senator Barack Obama of Illinois for president in the presidential election. In early , Reagan stated that his father would've opposed Donald Trump , remarking to The Daily Beast that his "father would have been ashamed of this Republican Party" as well as "been embarrassed and ashamed that a president of the United States was as incompetent and traitorous as the man occupying the White House now. Ron Reagan lives in Seattle. She died in from neuromuscular disease. They had no children. Reagan stated, in a New York Times interview, that he did not claim any religion, but that his sympathies were with Buddhism and his wife was a Buddhist. I can't be elected to anything because polls all say that people won't elect an atheist. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. For other people named Ron Reagan, see Ron Reagan disambiguation. Los Angeles , California , U. Doria Palmieri. Federica Basagni. Ronald Reagan Nancy Reagan. Eugene Register-Guard. Associated Press. My father at New York: Viking. Retrieved Retrieved July 10, Radio Online. September 4, Archived from the original on My Father at New York Times. Jul 27, Retrieved Sep 13, BBC News. May 10, Sunday Herald. September 26, Archived from the original on August 10, Retrieved April 25, The Huffington Post. October 31, September 16, Politico Magazine. Retrieved November 21, The New York Times. Retrieved August 30, Larry King Live transcript. June 23, Freedom From Religion Foundation. May 20, Ronald Reagan. In fiction In music U. Ronald Reagan | Biography, Facts, & Accomplishments | Britannica

From to Reagan served as president of the union of movie actors, the Screen Actors Guild. He fought against communist infiltration in the guild, crossing picket lines to break the sometimes violent strikes. Such violence and chaos were abhorrent to Reagan, and, when police and students clashed in Berkeley in May , Reagan, as governor of California, called out the National Guard to restore order. Much to the disgust of union members, he testified as a friendly witness before the House Un-American Activities Committee and cooperated in the blacklisting of actors, directors, and writers suspected of leftist sympathies. Although Reagan was still a Democrat at the time he campaigned for Harry Truman in the presidential election of , his political opinions were gradually growing more conservative. After initially supporting Democratic senatorial candidate Helen Douglas in , he switched his allegiance to Republican Richard Nixon midway through the campaign. He officially changed his party affiliation to Republican in Reagan met Nancy Davis Nancy Reagan , a relatively unknown actress, at a dinner party in , and the two were married in a simple ceremony in , at which actor William Holden was best man. The Reagans appeared together in the war movie Hell Cats of the Navy in After his acting career began to decline in the s, Reagan became the host of a television drama series, General Electric Theater , as well as spokesman for the General Electric Company. In the latter capacity he toured GE plants around the country, delivering inspirational speeches with a generally conservative, pro-business message. Article Contents. Print print Print. Table Of Contents. Facebook Twitter. Give Feedback External Websites. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article requires login. External Websites. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree See Article History. Top Questions. In contrast to his father, the younger Reagan's views were unabashedly liberal. In a Vanity Fair interview, Ron said that he did not speak out politically during his father's term because the press "never cared about my opinions as such, only as they related to him ", adding that he did not want to create the impression that he and his father were on bad terms because of political differences. In , Reagan hosted The Ron Reagan Show , a syndicated late-night talk show addressing political issues of the day, which was canceled after a brief run since it was unable to compete with the higher ratings of The Arsenio Hall Show , The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson , and Nightline. Reagan has worked in recent years as a magazine journalist, and has hosted talk shows on cable TV networks such as the Animal Planet network. Reagan presented a report from the United States each week. He has served on the board of the Creative Coalition , an organization founded in by a group that included Susan Sarandon and Christopher Reeve , to politically mobilize entertainers and artists, generally for First Amendment rights, and causes such as arts advocacy and public education. The program made its debut on September 8, In , he published My Father at A Memoir. This assertion was attacked by critics, including his brother, Michael Reagan. Ron Reagan subsequently clarified that he did not feel the lapses were evidence of "dementia. In July , Reagan spoke at the Democratic National Convention about his support for lifting Bush's restrictions on federally funded embryonic stem cell research , from which he expected a cure or new treatments for Alzheimer's disease , of which his father had recently died. A few of these folks, needless to say, are just grinding a political axe and they should be ashamed of themselves," Ron Reagan said of the restrictions. Bush Administration had "cheated to get into the White House. It's not something Americans ever want to think about their government. My sense of these people is that they don't have any respect for the public at large. They have a revolutionary mindset. I think they feel that anything they can do to prevail — lie, cheat, whatever — is justified by their revolutionary aims" and that he feared Bush was "hijacking" his father's reputation. Bush by Ron Reagan" [14] for Esquire. He voted for Democratic candidate John Kerry in the presidential election. Reagan endorsed then-senator Barack Obama of Illinois for president in the presidential election. In early , Reagan stated that his father would've opposed Donald Trump , remarking to The Daily Beast that his "father would have been ashamed of this Republican Party" as well as "been embarrassed and ashamed that a president of the United States was as incompetent and traitorous as the man occupying the White House now. Ron Reagan lives in Seattle. She died in from neuromuscular disease. They had no children. Reagan stated, in a New York Times interview, that he did not claim any religion, but that his sympathies were with Buddhism and his wife was a Buddhist. I can't be elected to anything because polls all say that people won't elect an atheist. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. For other people named Ron Reagan, see Ron Reagan disambiguation. Los Angeles , California , U. Doria Palmieri. Federica Basagni. Ronald Reagan Nancy Reagan. Eugene Register-Guard. Associated Press. My father at New York: Viking. Retrieved Retrieved July 10, Radio Online. September 4, Archived from the original on My Father at New York Times. Jul 27, Retrieved Sep 13, BBC News. May 10, Sunday Herald. September 26, Archived from the original on August 10,

Ron Reagan - Wikipedia

If Volcker had taken charge of the fed two years earlier, the economy might have improved sufficiently that Carter and not Reagan would have been elected in If Volcker had arrived two years later, the recession that routed the Republicans in the elections could have swept Reagan from office in He was the model for the perfect grandfather that everyone knows they can go to for comfort and encouragement. He had a wonderful sense of humor and was a master at putting everyone at ease. No one who worked with him wanted to disappoint him. Though our oldest president in age, he brought an energy and a sense of infinite possibility to every speech he gave. Thinking of the speech he gave after the Challenger incident reminds me that he was also capable of expressing tenderness in a way that made all of us feel he was grieving with us. The fact that he was an actor did not contribute to his success as president as much as I believe the time he spent as a sports radio announcer. He had to think on his feet and developed a real sense of how best to keep people entertained while sitting behind that microphone. Reagan behind the microphone If he is the model for future presidents, then the role of president will have to change. In some ways maybe it already has. Reagan was not cerebral, but he had the same ability as his hero Franklin Roosevelt to communicate through more than just words, through inflections and pauses to convey a sense of well being in the face of calamity. Going forward I can see the people that a president surrounds himself will be ever more important. View all 29 comments. Sep 27, Matt rated it it was amazing Shelves: audiobook. In another thrilling political biography, I turn my head to a man who is said to have shaped 20th century America for both his politics and ideological stances through the waning years of the Cold War. Ronald Wilson Reagan was a man of many experiences, from a poor childhood through to the honeymoon years after leaving office, as effectively illustrated by H. Reagan wore his ideological tilt on his sleeve, next to his heart, which moved from one end of the spectrum to the other. Brands In another thrilling political biography, I turn my head to a man who is said to have shaped 20th century America for both his politics and ideological stances through the waning years of the Cold War. Brands depiction of Reagan in three distinct periods, from daunting Democrat to rigid Republican through to charismatic conservative, exemplifies the progression the man made throughout his life. With no firmly rooted politics in his familial background, it is a wonder that Reagan became synonymous with the neo- conservative movement of the late 20th century and could be called one of America's great political figures. Brands does a masterful job in detailing the life and times of Reagan, leaving little to wonder for the reader keen on learning about this political giant. That Reagan first identified himself as a Democrat should be no surprise to the reader. Raised in a lower income family in Illinois, Reagan was forced to help bring bread to the table and handle the plight of an alcoholic father on whom few could rely. Brands does not belabour this point, but moves Reagan through his formative years by discussing the hardships that Reagan met, but which did not impede his personal successes. While he had high ambitions, Reagan settled into a smaller religious college and tried to carve out a niche on the football field, as horrid as he came to be. It was during these years that Reagan became a strong believer in Roosevelt's New Deal and praised its ability to help Americans. Pushing for a hands-on approach, Reagan stumped for Roosevelt's plan and saw benefit in ensuring the state could assist those who could not stay afloat on their own. After college and ready to contribute to the world, Reagan was soon pulled into the world of radio, taking jobs reporting sporting events and relying on his dramatic abilities to spin tales to those who tuned in. He was a man of the people and remained so, even after making his mark in Hollywood, where he became a household name. Though he seemed successful, as Brands shows through detailed narration, he was no Jimmy Stewart or John Wayne, though was able to use his abilities to pad his pockets effectively. With the move towards better representation and the creation of the Screen Actors Guild SAG , Reagan rose and soon became its president, making that his busiest role while living in Hollywood. However, with this intense analysis of Hollywood as a home for Communist sentiment, Reagan began to look for work outside of the big screen, becoming a key spokesman for General Electric. He spoke about the merits of the company to its employees at all the plants, perfecting a message that kept management happy and the employees in touch with the bosses. It is here that Brands shows the turning of Reagan's views, if slightly, away from the hands-on Democrat approach towards a more socially conscious and conservative set of values, perfect for the softer wing of the Republican Party, which he joined in , and became a political icon in With many years as a well-known and daunting Democrat, this turn opened eyes and minds to the persuasive nature of Reagan's message. The rigidity of his Republican ways took a great deal of time, but Brands plants the seed in Reagan's life around and lets it germinate. While on his General Electric speaking circuit, Reagan spoke out in favour of Republican candidate Barry Goldwater on the Arizona senator's fated presidential campaign. This sparked notice of Reagan by the political right, even if he cozied to its softer wing. Reagan gained political momentum and chose to run for Governor of California in , unseating Pat Brown on a platform of reform and fiscal tightening. Reagan headed into office and sought to balance that which was crooked in California, with Vietnam heating up and the 'flower child' movement in full-swing. Brands highlights Reagan's push to quash protests and subvert university students, representing the parental era and speaking out for a generation. His firm beliefs in Roosevelt's New Deal were curtailed for tighter sentiments on spending and the need to close the pursestrings to those seeking handouts. When Nixon won the presidency, a fellow Californian, Reagan sought to push his control of the most populist state to his favour, seeking a firm stance on both coasts. Alas, Nixon spoke like a conservative, but acted weakly, leaving Reagan to harden his own views. It was after Reagan served two gubernatorial terms that he sought to inject himself into the national stage again, not from Sacramento, but as a candidate for president. He felt Nixon bumbled his way through Republican control of the White House and insisted that Ford proved inept to handle the pressures of the job. Brands illustrates a wonderful battle during the primary season, which saw a sitting president seriously challenged for the Party's nomination. Had Reagan played his cards right, he might have toppled Ford. Even in his loss, Reagan illustrated that he was no longer the SAG President who held soft views on the arts and promoted the Welfare State. America was seeing a transformation of this man, preparing for another run at the top job. While never timid, Reagan's rigidity within the Republican Party might serve him well as he looked towards , with a micromanager running the show at Pennsylvania Avenue. Reagan's neo-conservative leanings did not arise upon his receiving the keys to the White House, as Brands exemplifies throughout the book. While the man who entered the presidency differed greatly from his self, Reagan used his time as Governor of California and the years he sought to win the Republican nomination to harden his shell. His views seemed unerring, though, as he waded through the liberal and somewhat opaque fiscal quagmire left for him, with deficits exponentially higher than anything he'd seen in Sacramento. Reagan attacked this, as he had on the campaign trail, by pushing through cuts in taxes and promised slashes to program funding in the early years of his first mandate, though Brands correctly points out that these reductions were not implemented simply because he sought them, some requiring committee and sub-committee votes. However, he sought to take the burden off the hands of Americans and let them spend their money in a more free-spirited manner. These struggles with a Democratic Congress did not prove daunting for Reagan, who held firm and pushed as far as possible, negotiating only to ensure his key tenets were met. Reagan's other strong-willed agenda item, which could be placed in a conservative column was the eradication of worldwide communism and a means of containing the Soviet influence on the world. Brands illustrates numerous attempts by Reagan to contain the Soviet approach, both through direct communication with Moscow and funding or directing support for groups to counter socialist movements in the Americas and Africa. This unwavering stance permeates the narrative from onwards, as Reagan worked through numerous Soviet leaders and a score of countries with socialist movements brewing or running sovereign governments. That Reagan would not back down cannot be downplayed or even ignored, for it did place America in hot water and Reagan on the verge of being impeached in the latter part of his second mandate. Reagan would not, however, bow to communism as his predecessors had, or adopt a strong sense of detente. It was a 'wage the ideological war or bust' mentality that summed up his two terms in office. Reagan did just that, culminating with numerous meetings with Mikhail Gorbachev, where he softened the General Secretary up enough to bring about meaningful and lasting change to the Cold War and ideological stand-off between the two spheres. Looking liberals in the eye and refusing to budge, Reagan sought to bring America out of the doldrums of spending and tighten the purse strings as a charismatic conservative, asking Americans if they wanted prosperity or pork. Most chose to forego a trip to the trough. Brands' fluid narrative and short chapters make the biography flow more effectively than some other political or presidential pieces I have read beforehand. By chopping events up into smaller pieces, rather than massive themes, the story is less daunting and allows the reader to digest things in a manner that better suits them. These were formative years in America and there is no need to slam it all into massive chapters, which keeps the reader drowning without the chance for a substantive break. Brands also utilises an effective use of multiple sources to illustrate a point or an event, offering opinions that may differ from Reagan's own, rather than spoon-feeding the reader the views by the Gipper alone. This fleshes out events and permits an internal debate within the reader's mind, permitting an evolution of ideas and opinions, while still leaving the final choice in the hands of the reader. Effective use of sources, views, and opinions only further substantiates the strength of the piece. Brands also highlights some of the key events in Reagan's life, while providing important backstories to help flesh-out the full picture. From the testimony at the HUAC to the assassination attempt and the Iran-Contra Affair, Reagan's role therein is undeniable, though the build-up is also essential in determining the true thread of the story. Brands does that and keeps the reader feeling informed during the progression. Actors come to life and their roles are interwoven into Reagan's life seamlessly as Brands progresses through even the densest of times. Kudos Mr. Brands for this stellar piece of work. I have new-found respect for the man, his politics, and the life he shaped without ever selling out to those around him. View all 4 comments. Feb 04, Cora rated it it was ok. Ronald Reagan left office 26 years ago this past January, and it's weird that it's taken this long for him to get the attention of the regular Great Men of American History biographers. In part this has to be due to the disastrous reception of Edmund Morris' DUTCH, partially fictionalized after Morris confessed that he couldn't truly understand Reagan. In part this is because critic Ronald Reagan left office 26 years ago this past January, and it's weird that it's taken this long for him to get the attention of the regular Great Men of American History biographers. Brands has finally made the attempt, and hopefully this will open the door a little bit. Reagan is famously friendly at a distance, so aloof that staffers would come and go without him noticing; that he failed to recognize his own son Michael at his high school graduation; that he blithely skipped Michael's wedding in Hawaii to attend that of Tricia Nixon's, happening the same day; so aloof that even Nancy Reagan confessed that although she got closer than anyone else, there was part of himself that even she didn't get to see. And yet Brands is at his strongest talking about Reagan as a man. Reagan's letters, particularly before his political career, are fairly revealing, whether Reagan is complaining to Jack Warner about a film shoot in London or reflecting on love and sexuality to a childhood friend. I found many aspects to Reagan that were likeable and sympathetic. Brands' assessment of Reagan's political career has a little bit for everybody. For conservatives, Brands is happy to award the victory of the Cold War to Reagan. Reagan was fond of linking himself with Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and of co-opting FDR's rhetoric for right-wing purposes, and Brands concludes that Reagan was a mirror-universe FDR, as instrumental in ushering in a conservative era as FDR was in ushering in a liberal era, and as influential overseas. But is this true? Take the Cold War claim to begin with. Brands claims that Reagan ended the Cold War and prompted the collapse of the Soviet Union, with the partnership of Gorbachev. That's like saying that Lord Palmerston freed the slaves in America with the partnership of Abraham Lincoln. Brands doesn't bother to show that Reagan's defense build-up caused the Soviet economic crisis, and in fact quotes Reagan saying as late as that the defense build-up was necessary because the Soviets were winning the arms race. And if the Soviets were already bankrupting themselves with military hardware, like Reagan claimed at the time, then his defense buildup wasn't necessary to prompt the crisis. And that's leaving aside the drop in oil prices in the late 80s which historically has meant bad news for oil producers like the USSR. But let's accept provisionally that this is a fair conclusion. Regimes can endure economic stagnation for a long time without collapsing. The Soviet Union fell due to internal political forces that were set in motion by Gorbachev, not anybody from the outside. Gorbachev also made the crucial decision not to use force to keep countries behind the Iron Curtain. A reactionary Soviet leadership determined to hold on to the status quo might well have held on despite anything that America did in response. And if we're not so myopic as to give the current American president credit for everything happening on planet earth, then Reagan's foreign policy legacy seems a lot less substantial. It was to his credit that he pivoted towards arms reduction in his second term, and that he rebuilt good relations with the Soviets even concluding that it was no longer an 'evil empire. On domestic policy, Brands' interpretation also claims too much. But it seems worth mentioning that over the next few decades, the deductions were added back in, the capital gains rate was cut, and the upper tax rate was raised. Reagan also signed an immigration bill that Brands hails as landmark--and yet despite promises made at the time, the enforcement provisions in that bill failed to prevent ten-plus million people from immigrating to this country illegally since that bill was sign. Reagan did succeed at cutting taxes, and the tax rates have never risen as high as they were during the Carter administration. Conservative critics of Reagan claimed at the time that supporting tax cuts without spending cuts was a mistake because tax cuts are what make spending cuts politically palatable. Thirty years on, it seems that this critique didn't go far enough: during the Bush Jr. And yet you won't hear much about structural deficits in H. Brands' take on the Reagan presidency. You also won't hear much on financial de-regulation, despite the savings and loan crisis that spawned from Reagan-era decisions and its obvious relevance for the present; nor much on the war on drugs; and AIDS gets as much attention as Nancy Reagan's relationship with Raisa Gorbacheva. There's a revealing moment early in the book: Brands alludes to allegations by nuclear-freeze advocates that the administration's arms-control stance, the 'zero option', was chosen to alienate the Soviets and forestall arms control negotiations. What he doesn't mention is that this is true--Richard Perle proposed the stance to Reagan because it required Soviets to remove existing missiles while the US would only promise not to install potential missiles. He might also have mentioned that Reagan didn't understand this distinction. I call this revealing because it goes to another odd choice of emphasis in the book. Many people involved in the Reagan administration describe how chaotic it was, how Reagan's decisions were rarely clear, how lower-level staffers and aides drove their own agenda without Reagan knowing to intervene. Occasionally Brands spins this as a positive Reagan knew what to focus on, he says , but as the zero option instance shows, Reagan often didn't understand his own key initiatives as well. He was deeply concerned about Nicaragua, but didn't realize that the State Department was pursuing negotiations while the CIA was mining the harbors--nor did the CIA or the State Department know what the other was doing. He didn't understand many of the important provisions in his first budget, which was a key part of Reaganonomics. I don't believe that Ronald Reagan was stupid, but that perception didn't come from nowhere. I came to believe that HW Brands is a genre author, that genre being Great Man of History biographies, and in a sense his decisions on how to portray Reagan are driven by genre restrictions. So Reagan must be clear-eyed and decisive, and he has to stand astride the world like a colossus, because he's our protagonist and that's how the story works. Brands has said that this is the last in an informal six volume history of the United States through biographies--including Franklin, Jackson, Grant, Teddy Roosevelt, FDR, and now Reagan--and that informs his approach to history. The problem, particularly in the case of Reagan, is that it obscures far more than it illuminates. There's much about Reagan's legacy that you'll never know from reading this book. Sep 20, Steve rated it really liked it. Brands was published in Brands is a professor at the University of Texas, a prolific author and a two-time Pulitzer finalist. He has written nearly thirty books on a wide range of historical topics including biographies of Andrew Jackson, Ulysses Grant, Theodore Roosevelt and FDR each of which I have previously read and reviewed. The first full-scale biography of Reagan in over a decade, this page book contains chapters organized into seven major sections. Very few presidential biographies of comparable length are this easy to read. But the narrative sweeps too briskly through his childhood — about a page per year — moderating somewhat when the aspiring actor moves to Hollywood. It is clear from the outset that Brands is friendly to his subject, but he seems intent on maintaining a sense of balance throughout the text. The reader is seldom unaware of the economic, political or social backdrop associated with moments described in this book. But he sometimes provides so much context that Reagan becomes peripheral to the narrative. First, the authior often injects lengthy quotations and portions of transcripts into the narrative. This can be distracting on its own, but since he has a penchant for letting Reagan speak for Reagan, it often leaves an impression that Brands is just observing rather than analyzing and critiquing. This biography is generously replete with stories, anecdotes and on-the-scene reporting. But few of these tales will break new ground for readers familiar with Reagan. Finally, despite its impressive length this book feels surprisingly light and fails to provide as many penetrating observations and keen perspectives as I would have expected from Brands. Overall, H. It is fast-moving and remarkably engaging, but often proves a better history text than biography. And for all its merit, this book never quite delivers the richly-hued and penetrating portrait of Reagan it seems to promise. View 1 comment. Jan 04, Carmen Blankenship rated it it was amazing Shelves: memoirs , netgalley. President Reagan took office when I was in elementary school and I heard his name often in my household. My father was very conservative something I didn't realize until I was older and the words that my father used to describe President Reagan was "Finally". This is an exceptional book about an exceptional man. I would highly recommend to everyone, regardless if you are a fan of President Reagan's politics. A huge thank you to Negalley and Double Day books for the advanced copy in exchange fo President Reagan took office when I was in elementary school and I heard his name often in my household. A huge thank you to Negalley and Double Day books for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. Jun 25, Roger DeBlanck rated it it was amazing Shelves: non-fiction. It chronicles all the essentials: his upbringing with an alcoholic father, his start in radio, his years in Hollywood, and his subsequent political career and rise to the presidency. The depth and range of the narrative make it impressive, yet it is compulsively readable. What I take away most from his study is that Reagan was a leader of great conscience, faith, caring, and fierce, undaunted determination. To complement his charm and humor, he also had an ability to listen to all sides of an issue. As president, he did more to reform taxes and cut government spending than anyone before him. He offset these domestic challenges with his greatest foreign policy mission: to stare down communism and bring about its demise. Brands does not let Reagan slide on his failure to know what happened. Even though compassion for the hostages allowed him to go down a dangerous route of negotiating with a terrorist state like Iran, he still tried to look at his decision as the right option, despite its clear setbacks. Whatever adversity or dilemma he faced, Reagan took solace in his unwavering optimism that something positive would eventually emerge from the chaos. He was right most of the time, and he eventually won out in the hearts of Americans. Brands does an excellent job of capturing the momentousness of the long life of Ronald Reagan. This is a very uneven book. It has two parts - one very good and one horrible. It is a mix of some very interesting extended direct quotes from Ronald Reagan and a uneven portrayal of a lot that made Reagan a great president. Let me offer some examples. Soon after WWII HUAC began a series of hearings on infiltration of communists into what we would now call the media concentrating on film but also including other industries that were related. As a part of the hearings and as a leader of the Screen Actors Guild, Reagan testified. The clear evidence with several decades of history behind them is that a there were some people in the entertainment industry as well as other industries that were trying to actively subvert the United States and aid Russia; and b The Hollywood 10, who may or may not have been part of the subversives, saw this as a political opportunity they thought they could win, which was a huge misjudgment. His extensive quotation of the testimony of John Howard Lawson one of the 10 shows that they were not really victims of an unfair system - they tried at least Lawson did to set themselves up. From my view the Committee was at times heavy handed but still had a reason to act and Reagan handled himself quite honorably. A second example comes from the discussion of the development of the Economic Recovery Tax Act and his subsequent efforts in tax reform. Two things stand out. Stockman and I were Congressional staffers before he went to the Administration and I thought he was bright but quite self absorbed. His conversations which resulted in the William Greider Atlantic article the Education of David Stockman show that Stockman, like many young staffers in DC cared a lot more about preening his own image than in doing the job he was hired to do. As ERTA developed in the legislative process, its key features were delayed - so the revenue curve was slowed - although out year receipts were actually higher than expected. But combined with the increase in military spending which ultimately proved productive against the Soviets and the unwillingness of members of congress to meaningfully reduce spending created the problems of the deficits. So Reagan was successful in simplifying the tax code and at the same time not as successful in balancing the budget. In , when the recession continued and revenues were not yet piling in Reagan reluctantly agreed to what was called the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act, which scaled back some of the excesses like Accelerated Cost Recovery - ACRS that congress added to the rate reduction. Reagan successfully held on to the rate reductions of ERTA. Again, the Administration agreed to raise some revenues in exchange for reductions in spending and again the congressional leadership failed to follow through on the expenditure reductions in a meaningful way. Brands seems to characterize Reagan as an aloof policy maker who only got the big picture. That is simply untrue. Critics yammered about how the Act would not work - but the evidence was that it worked quite well - producing significant upturns in growth for more than a decade. A book like Showdown at Gucci Gulch - shows the deep involvement of Reagan in getting the discussions started and in enlisting an odd group of supporters to push the final result. At one point Brands claims that the economic growth in the s was a result of the Clinton era tax increases. While I understand the argument it is wrong. The forces of growth during the s came about as a result of a couple of forces, including the fall of the soviets encouraged by Reagan policies and the resulting peace dividend and finally the unleashing of capital a result of tax policies in ERTA and TRA. The book tells a story of George Schultz putting together a briefing on the budget for Reagan when he was governor. Schultz commented that Reagan was quite knowledgable about the budget process. His management style was different than predecessor, who was reputed to be concerned with who played on the White House tennis courts. But his mark of leadership was clearly there. In one incident Reagan had decided to fire his secretary of state, Al Haig who was one of those Washington DC fixtures more concerned with his own image than doing his job. He called Haig to his office and handed him an unsealed envelope which contained a letter from the President thanking him for his service and accepting a resignation which had not yet been proffered. He also had two half-sisters born to Reagan and Wyman, Maureen Reagan — and Christine Reagan, who was born prematurely, on June 26, , and died the same day. At an early age, his father, Ronald Reagan, often joked that they were related to every royal family with the name O'Regan in Europe. Burke's Peerage provided the Reagans with their family tree, which lacked any direct connection to European royalty. Ron Reagan undertook a different philosophical and political path from his father at an early age. At 12, he told his parents that he would not be going to church anymore because he was an atheist. Reagan attended and was expelled from The Webb School of California. He commented:. They [the school administration] thought I was a bad influence on the other kids. As I recall, the immediate reason was I went to a dance at a neighboring girl's school in a classmate's car. This was an infraction. They had been looking for an excuse. I didn't get caught at anything. Reagan dropped out of Yale University in after one semester to become a ballet dancer. Ron talks of his parents with much affection. But these absences are strange and go back a ways. The elder Reagan commented in his White House diary on this day that Ron's performance was reminiscent of Fred Astaire. Reagan became more politically active after his father left the White House in In contrast to his father, the younger Reagan's views were unabashedly liberal. In a Vanity Fair interview, Ron said that he did not speak out politically during his father's term because the press "never cared about my opinions as such, only as they related to him ", adding that he did not want to create the impression that he and his father were on bad terms because of political differences. In , Reagan hosted The Ron Reagan Show , a syndicated late-night talk show addressing political issues of the day, which was canceled after a brief run since it was unable to compete with the higher ratings of The Arsenio Hall Show , The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson , and Nightline. Reagan has worked in recent years as a magazine journalist, and has hosted talk shows on cable TV networks such as the Animal Planet network. Reagan presented a report from the United States each week. He has served on the board of the Creative Coalition , an organization founded in by a group that included Susan Sarandon and Christopher Reeve , to politically mobilize entertainers and artists, generally for First Amendment rights, and causes such as arts advocacy and public education. The program made its debut on September 8, In , he published My Father at A Memoir. This assertion was attacked by critics, including his brother, Michael Reagan. Ron Reagan subsequently clarified that he did not feel the lapses were evidence of "dementia. In July , Reagan spoke at the Democratic National Convention about his support for lifting Bush's restrictions on federally funded embryonic stem cell research , from which he expected a cure or new treatments for Alzheimer's disease , of which his father had recently died. A few of these folks, needless to say, are just grinding a political axe and they should be ashamed of themselves," Ron Reagan said of the restrictions. Bush Administration had "cheated to get into the White House. It's not something Americans ever want to think about their government. My sense of these people is that they don't have any respect for the public at large. They have a revolutionary mindset. Reagan remembered a noisy fire engine from Chicago that made him want to be a fireman. America entered World War I in April , when the family was in Galesburg; the soldiers on the troop trains passing through seemed to a six-year-old to embody adventure and heroism. The war ended in November , with the family in Monmouth, where the celebrations almost overwhelmed the lad. The family landed in Dixon when Reagan was nine. The town of ten thousand became his home until he left for college. Jack Reagan pulled himself together a bit, or perhaps Nelle simply put a stop to the serial moves. But as his sons grew into teenagers, they encountered challenges of a different sort. Dixon had few Catholics and disliked most of those. She sent Neil to the butcher to cadge liver for a mythical family cat. She filled the stew pot with oatmeal and passed it off as a delicacy. I bit into it. She spent every Sunday at the Disciples of Christ Church and took the boys with her, to Sunday school at first and then to the regular services. She never thought ill of anyone, so far as her sons could tell. Their youth witnessed the revival of the Ku Klux Klan, which added Catholics, Jews, and immigrants to African Americans as targets of its venom. Jack forbade the boys to see The Birth of a Nation, the D. Griffith film that made heroes out of the white-robed vigilantes. In vain did Neil and Ronnie point out that all the other kids were seeing the picture and that, anyway, the Klan in the movie was of a different time and place. Reagan told another story that Jack had told him. The frequent relocations left him disconcerted. In baseball, I was forever striking out or suffering the indignity of missing an easy fly ball. I was so lousy at baseball that when our group was choosing up sides for a game, I was always the last kid chosen. I remember one time when I was in the eighth grade. Everybody was looking at me, expecting me to catch it. I just stood there. But the damage to his psyche had been done. Nelle Reagan contributed to the cultural life of Dixon by organizing amateur performances at her church, where participants delivered passages from books, plays, poems, or speeches they had committed to memory. Nelle performed and loved the experience. She encouraged her sons to join her. Neil accepted readily; Dutch required convincing. But she persisted and eventually won him over. That was a new experience for me and I liked it. I liked that approval. For a kid suffering childhood pangs of insecurity, the applause was music. Reagan was an early reader, with a sticky memory. 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