How Did Reagan Achieve Success Or Failure?

Words: 975
Pages: 4

clearly understood visual media and used it to shape his voting base to gain and maintain public support. They describe Reagan as using television knowing that to audiences, substance was not as important as image (p. 116).
In the policies themed section of this book. Joseph j. Hogan discusses Reagan’s economic policies. Reagan wanted to offset defense spending increases with savings from cutting federal bureaucracy. Projections were that the economy would grow when people had more money to spend from less taxes, businesses would expand with less corporate tax, and more people would have jobs (p. 139). His concept did not work, rather, instead the created massive government debt and deficit for little gain.
Dilys M. Hill discusses Reagan’s attempt to reduce the role of the government. His domestic policy was an attempt to reduce dependence on the state and stimulate entrepreneurs
…show more content…
Moore discusses Reagan’s foreign policy. Reagan lacked experience and relied on his advisors for key decisions. His first year’s foreign policy was one of great confusion (p.179). Throughout his administration Reagan had difficulties picking the right people for his foreign policy team. His appointees often made poor decisions and Reagan lacked knowledge to effectively manage his policies. Moore cites Reagan’s lack of oversight as being a key factor in the Iran Contra scandal. Despite his setbacks Moore concludes Reagan managed to achieve more successes than failures as president. Phil Williams describes Reagan’s defense policies as two terms of waste and mismanagement, with strategic confusion and short-term military resurgence. He does credit Reagan’s defense policy as being successful in causing the Soviets to negotiate nuclear arms treaties. The Soviets were so concerned about Reagan’s Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) that they sought a nuclear arms agreement in hopes of negating United States political support of SDI to deny it funding (p.