Biography
of
Ronald
Reagan
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ABOUT
THE
WHITE
HOUSE
•
PRESIDENTS
OUR PRESIDENTS
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Eisenhower
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Kennedy
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Lyndon
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Johnson
37.
Richard
M.
Nixon
38.
Gerald
R.
Ford
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James
Carter
40.
Ronald
Reagan
41.
George
H.
W.
Bush
42.
William
J.
Clinton
43.
George
W.
Bush
44.
Barack
Obama
40.
RONALD
REAGAN
1981-1989
At
the
end
of
his
two
terms
in
office,
Ronald
Reagan
viewed
with
satisfaction
the
achievements
of
his
innovative
program
known
as
the
Reagan
Revolution,
which
aimed
to
reinvigorate
the
American
people
and
reduce
their
reliance
upon
Government.
He
felt
he
had
fulfilled
his
campaign
pledge
of
1980
to
restore
"the
great,
confident
roar
of
American
progress
and
growth
and
optimism."
On
February
6,
1911,
Ronald
Wilson
Reagan
was
born
to
Nelle
and
John
Reagan
in
Tampico,
Illinois.
He
attended
high
school
in
nearby
Dixon
and
then
worked
his
way
through
Eureka
College.
There,
he
studied
economics
and
sociology,
played
on
the
football
team,
and
acted
in
school
plays.
Upon
graduation,
he
became
a
radio
sports
announcer.
A
screen
test
in
1937
won
him
a
contract
in
Hollywood.
During
the
next
two
decades
he
appeared
in
53
films.
From
his
first
marriage
to
actress
Jane
Wyman,
he
had
two
children,
Maureen
and
Michael.
Maureen
passed
away
in
2001.
In
1952
he
married
Nancy
Davis,
who
was
also
an
actress,
and
they
had
two
children,
Patricia
Ann
and
Ronald
Prescott.
As
president
of
the
Screen
Actors
Guild,
Reagan
became
embroiled
in
disputes
over
the
issue
of
Communism
in
the
film
industry;
his
political
views
shifted
from
liberal
to
conservative.
He
toured
the
country
as
a
television
host,
becoming
a
spokesman
for
conservatism.
In
1966
he
was
elected
Governor
of
California
by
a
margin
of
a
million
votes;
he
was
re-elected
in
1970.
Ronald
Reagan
won
the
Republican
Presidential
nomination
in
1980
and
chose
as
his
running
mate
former
Texas
Congressman
and
United
Nations
Ambassador
George
Bush.
Voters
troubled
by
inflation
and
by
the
year-long
confinement
of
Americans
in
Iran
swept
the
Republican
ticket
into
office.
Reagan
won
489
electoral
votes
to
49
for
President
Jimmy
Carter.
On
January
20,
1981,
Reagan
took
office.
Only
69
days
later
he
was
shot
by
a
would-be
assassin,
but
quickly
recovered
and
returned
to
duty.
His
grace
and
wit
during
the
dangerous
incident
caused
his
popularity
to
soar.
Dealing
skillfully
with
Congress,
Reagan
obtained
legislation
to
stimulate
economic
growth,
curb
inflation,
increase
employment,
and
strengthen
national
defense.
He
embarked
upon
a
course
of
cutting
taxes
and
Government
expenditures,
refusing
to
deviate
from
it
when
the
strengthening
of
defense
forces
led
to
a
large
deficit.
A
renewal
of
national
self-confidence
by
1984
helped
Reagan
and
Bush
win
a
second
term
with
an
unprecedented
number
of
electoral
votes.
Their
victory
turned
away
Democratic
challengers
Walter
F.
Mondale
and
Geraldine
Ferraro.
In
1986
Reagan
obtained
an
overhaul
of
the
income
tax
code,
which
eliminated
many
deductions
and
exempted
millions
of
people
with
low
incomes.
At
the
end
of
his
administration,
the
Nation
was
enjoying
its
longest
recorded
period
of
peacetime
prosperity
without
recession
or
depression.
In
foreign
policy,
Reagan
sought
to
achieve
"peace
through
strength."
During
his
two
terms
he
increased
defense
spending
35
percent,
but
sought
to
improve
relations
with
the
Soviet
Union.
In
dramatic
meetings
with
Soviet
leader
Mikhail
Gorbachev,
he
negotiated
a
treaty
that
would
eliminate
intermediate-range
nuclear
missiles.
Reagan
declared
war
against
international
terrorism,
sending
American
bombers
against
Libya
after
evidence
came
out
that
Libya
was
involved
in
an
attack
on
American
soldiers
in
a
West
Berlin
nightclub.
By
ordering
naval
escorts
in
the
Persian
Gulf,
he
maintained
the
free
flow
of
oil
during
the
Iran-Iraq
war.
In
keeping
with
the
Reagan
Doctrine,
he
gave
support
to
anti-Communist
insurgencies
in
Central
America,
Asia,
and
Africa.
Overall,
the
Reagan
years
saw
a
restoration
of
prosperity,
and
the
goal
of
peace
through
strength
seemed
to
be
within
grasp.
For
more
information
about
President
Reagan,
please
visit
Ronald
Reagan
Library
and
Museum
You
are
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