Ronald Reagan

president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

Ronald Reagan was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He is considered one of the most prominent conservative figures in American history and his presidency constituted the Reagan era.

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About the Ronald Reagan

Ronald Wilson Reaganwas an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. A member of the Republican Party, he became an important figure in the American conservative movement, and his presidency is known as the Reagan era.

Born and raised in northern Illinois, Reagan graduated from Eureka College in 1932 and worked as a sports broadcaster for several regional radio stations. In 1937, he moved to California and became a well-known film actor. During his acting career, Reagan twice served as the president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1947 to 1952 and from 1959 to 1960. In the 1950s, he began working on television and became a spokesman for General Electric. Reagan’s “A Time for Choosing” speech during the 1964 presidential campaign launched his rise as a prominent conservative figure. After being elected governor of California in 1966, he raised taxes, turned the state budget deficit into a surplus, and implemented harsh crackdowns on university protests. Following his loss to Gerald Ford in the 1976 Republican Party presidential primaries, Reagan won the 1980 Republican nomination and then proceeded to a landslide victory over President Jimmy Carter in the 1980 U.S. presidential election.

During his presidency, Reagan implemented “Reaganomics”, which involved economic deregulation and cuts in both taxes and government spending during a period of stagflation. On the world stage, he escalated the arms race and transitioned Cold War policy away from the policies of detente with the Soviet Union. In 1983, Reagan ordered the U.S. invasion of Grenada which led to the overthrow of the communist regime that had recently taken power. Reagan’s first term was also marked by an attempted assassination, confrontations with public-sector labor unions, a significant expansion of the war on drugs, and a slow government response to the growing U.S. AIDS epidemic. In the 1984 presidential election, he defeated Carter’s former vice president Walter Mondale in another landslide victory. Foreign affairs dominated Reagan’s second term, including the 1986 bombing of Libya, the secret and illegal sale of arms to Iran to fund the Contras, and a more conciliatory approach in talks with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev that culminated in the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty.

Reagan left the presidency in 1989 with the American economy having seen a significant reduction of inflation, the unemployment rate having fallen, and the U.S. having entered its then-longest peacetime expansion. At the same time, the national debt had nearly tripled since 1981 as a result of his cuts in taxes and increased military spending, despite cuts to domestic discretionary spending. Reagan’s policies also contributed to the end of the Cold War and the end of Soviet communism. Alzheimer’s disease hindered Reagan post-presidency, and his physical and mental capacities gradually deteriorated, ultimately leading to his death in 2004. Historians and scholars have typically ranked him among the upper tier among American presidents, and his post-presidential approval ratings by the general public are usually high.

Frequently Asked Questions

Before becoming president, Ronald Reagan graduated from Eureka College and worked as a sports broadcaster on several regional radio stations. He later moved to California and became a well-known film actor, serving as the president of the Screen Actors Guild.

Ronald Reagan was elected president in 1980, defeating incumbent Democratic president Jimmy Carter in a landslide victory.

During his presidency, Ronald Reagan implemented Reaganomics, which involved economic deregulation and cuts in taxes and government spending. He also escalated the arms race with the Soviet Union and ordered the U.S. invasion of Grenada in 1983.

Reagan transitioned Cold War policy away from the policies of détente with the Soviet Union, and his more conciliatory approach in talks with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev culminated in the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty.

During Ronald Reagan’s presidency, the American economy saw a significant reduction of inflation and the unemployment rate fell, but the national debt had nearly tripled since 1981 as a result of his cuts in taxes and increased military spending.

Historians and scholars have typically ranked Ronald Reagan above average among American presidents, and his post-presidential approval ratings by the general public are usually high.

Alzheimer’s disease hindered Ronald Reagan’s post-presidency, and his physical and mental capacities gradually deteriorated, ultimately leading to his death in 2004.

108 Quotes by Ronald Reagan

  1. 1.

    Within the covers of the Bible are the answers for all the problems men face.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  2. 2.

    Latinos are Republican. They just don’t know it yet.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  3. 3.

    Politics I supposed to be the second-oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  4. 4.

    Each generation goes further than the generation preceding it because it stands on the shoulders of that generation. You will have opportunities beyond anything we’ve ever known.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  5. 5.

    While I take inspiration from the past, like most Americans, I live for the future.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  6. 6.

    Entrepreneurs and their small enterprises are responsible for almost all the economic growth in the United States.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  7. 7.

    There are no great limits to growth because there are no limits of human intelligence, imagination, and wonder.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  8. 8.

    Man is not free unless government is limited.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  9. 9.

    Going to college offered me the chance to play football for four more years.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  10. 10.

    The thought of being President frightens me and I do not think I want the job.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  11. 11.

    The best minds are not in government. If any were, business would steal them away.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  12. 12.

    There are no constraints on the human mind, no walls around the human spirit, no barriers to our progress except those we ourselves erect.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  13. 13.

    Trust, but verify.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  14. 14.

    No mother would ever willingly sacrifice her sons for territorial gain, for economic advantage, for ideology.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  15. 15.

    Let us be sure that those who come after will say of us in our time, that in our time we did everything that could be done. We finished the race; we kept them free; we kept the faith.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  16. 16.

    No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we’ll ever see on this earth!

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  17. 17.

    The taxpayer – that’s someone who works for the federal government but doesn’t have to take the civil service examination.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  18. 18.

    Mr Gorbachev, tear down this wall!

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  19. 19.

    History teaches that war begins when governments believe the price of aggression is cheap.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  20. 20.

    Surround yourself with the best people you can find, delegate authority, and don’t interfere as long as the policy you’ve decided upon is being carried out.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  21. 21.

    I am not worried about the deficit. It is big enough to take care of itself.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  22. 22.

    I favor the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and it must be enforced at gunpoint if necessary.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  23. 23.

    Today, if you invent a better mousetrap, the government comes along with a better mouse.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  24. 24.

    No matter what time it is, wake me, even if it’s in the middle of a Cabinet meeting.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  25. 25.

    Protecting the rights of even the least individual among us is basically the only excuse the government has for even existing.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  26. 26.

    Government always finds a need for whatever money it gets.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  27. 27.

    How can a president not be an actor?

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  28. 28.

    I have wondered at times what the Ten Commandments would have looked like if Moses had run them through the US Congress.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  29. 29.

    One picture is worth 1,000 denials.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  30. 30.

    The most terrifying words in the English language are: I’m from the government and I’m here to help.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  31. 31.

    Government’s first duty is to protect the people, not run their lives.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  32. 32.

    You know, if I listened to Michael Dukakis long enough, I would be convinced we’re in an economic downturn and people are homeless and going without food and medical attention and that we’ve got to do something about the unemployed.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  33. 33.

    Some people wonder all their lives if they’ve made a difference. The Marines don’t have that problem.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  34. 34.

    Of the four wars in my lifetime, none came about because the U.S. was too strong.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  35. 35.

    Thomas Jefferson once said, ‘We should never judge a president by his age, only by his works.’ And ever since he told me that, I stopped worrying.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  36. 36.

    Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  37. 37.

    I’ve never been able to understand why a Republican contributor is a ‘fat cat’ and a Democratic contributor of the same amount of money is a ‘public-spirited philanthropist’.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  38. 38.

    Peace is not absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  39. 39.

    Recession is when a neighbor loses his job. Depression is when you lose yours.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  40. 40.

    If the Soviet Union let another political party come into existence, they would still be a one-party state, because everybody would join the other party.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  41. 41.

    To sit back hoping that someday, some way, someone will make things right is to go on feeding the crocodile, hoping he will eat you last – but eat you he will.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  42. 42.

    To paraphrase Winston Churchill, I did not take the oath I have just taken with the intention of presiding over the dissolution of the world’s strongest economy.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  43. 43.

    You can tell alot about a fellow’s character by his way of eating jellybeans.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  44. 44.

    We must reject the idea that every time a law’s broken, society is guilty rather than the lawbreaker. It is time to restore the American precept that each individual is accountable for his actions.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  45. 45.

    When you can’t make them see the light, make them feel the heat.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  46. 46.

    It’s silly talking about how many years we will have to spend in the jungles of Vietnam when we could pave the whole country and put parking stripes on it and still be home by Christmas.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  47. 47.

    People do not make wars; governments do.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  48. 48.

    My fellow Americans, I am pleased to tell you I just signed legislation which outlaws Russia forever. The bombing begins in five minutes.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  49. 49.

    There are no easy answers’ but there are simple answers. We must have the courage to do what we know is morally right.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  50. 50.

    Welfare’s purpose should be to eliminate, as far as possible, the need for its own existence.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  51. 51.

    If the federal government had been around when the Creator was putting His hand to this state, Indiana wouldn’t be here. It’d still be waiting for an environmental impact statement.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  52. 52.

    Politics is not a bad profession. If you succeed there are many rewards, if you disgrace yourself you can always write a book.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  53. 53.

    Life is one grand, sweet song, so start the music.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  54. 54.

    Status quo, you know, is Latin for ‘the mess we’re in’.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  55. 55.

    A people free to choose will always choose peace.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  56. 56.

    We’re in greater danger today than we were the day after Pearl Harbor. Our military is absolutely incapable of defending this country.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  57. 57.

    Let us not forget who we are. Drug abuse is a repudiation of everything America is.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  58. 58.

    Concentrated power has always been the enemy of liberty.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  59. 59.

    Inflation is as violent as a mugger, as frightening as an armed robber and as deadly as a hit man.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  60. 60.

    Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women. It is a weapon our adversaries in today’s world do not have.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  61. 61.

    If we love our country, we should also love our countrymen.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  62. 62.

    I know in my heart that man is good. That what is right will always eventually triumph. And there’s purpose and worth to each and every life.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  63. 63.

    Unemployment insurance is a pre-paid vacation for freeloaders.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  64. 64.

    I never drink coffee at lunch. I find it keeps me awake for the afternoon.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  65. 65.

    They say the world has become too complex for simple answers. They are wrong.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  66. 66.

    It’s true hard work never killed anybody, but I figure, why take the chance?

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  67. 67.

    How do you tell a communist? Well, it’s someone who reads Marx and Lenin. And how do you tell an anti-Communist? It’s someone who understands Marx and Lenin.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  68. 68.

    We will always remember. We will always be proud. We will always be prepared, so we will always be free.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  69. 69.

    We might come closer to balancing the Budget if all of us lived closer to the Commandments and the Golden Rule.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  70. 70.

    We should measure welfare’s success by how many people leave welfare, not by how many are added.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  71. 71.

    Government is like a baby. An alimentary canal with a big appetite at one end and no sense of responsibility at the other.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  72. 72.

    Republicans believe every day is the Fourth of July, but the democrats believe every day is April 15.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  73. 73.

    We have the duty to protect the life of an unborn child.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  74. 74.

    If we ever forget that we are One Nation Under God, then we will be a nation gone under.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  75. 75.

    But there are advantages to being elected President. The day after I was elected, I had my high school grades classified Top Secret.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  76. 76.

    Don’t be afraid to see what you see.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  77. 77.

    Before I refuse to take your questions, I have an opening statement.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  78. 78.

    What we have found in this country, and maybe we’re more aware of it now, is one problem that we’ve had, even in the best of times, and that is the people who are sleeping on the grates, the homeless, you might say, by choice.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  79. 79.

    One way to make sure crime doesn’t pay would be to let the government run it.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  80. 80.

    Information is the oxygen of the modern age. It seeps through the walls topped by barbed wire, it wafts across the electrified borders.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  81. 81.

    All the waste in a year from a nuclear power plant can be stored under a desk.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  82. 82.

    The problem is not that people are taxed too little, the problem is that government spends too much.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  83. 83.

    Heroes may not be braver than anyone else. They’re just braver five minutes longer.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  84. 84.

    A tree’s a tree. How many more do you need to look at?

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  85. 85.

    We are never defeated unless we give up on God.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  86. 86.

    Government does not solve problems; it subsidizes them.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  87. 87.

    We should declare war on North Vietnam. We could pave the whole country and put parking strips on it, and still be home by Christmas.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  88. 88.

    It’s difficult to believe that people are still starving in this country because food isn’t available.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  89. 89.

    Politics is just like show business. You have a hell of an opening, coast for a while, and then have a hell of a close.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  90. 90.

    I’ve often said there’s nothing better for the inside of a man than the outside of a horse.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  91. 91.

    Today we did what we had to do. They counted on America to be passive. They counted wrong.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  92. 92.

    It doesn’t do good to open doors for someone who doesn’t have the price to get in. If he has the price, he may not need the laws. There is no law saying the Negro has to live in Harlem or Watts.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  93. 93.

    Government exists to protect us from each other. Where government has gone beyond its limits is in deciding to protect us from ourselves.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  94. 94.

    All great change in America begins at the dinner table.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  95. 95.

    Democracy is worth dying for, because it’s the most deeply honorable form of government ever devised by man.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  96. 96.

    Violence has been Nicaragua’s most important export to the world.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  97. 97.

    Facts are stubborn things.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  98. 98.

    It has been said that politics is the second oldest profession. I have learned that it bears a striking resemblance to the first.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  99. 99.

    Freedom prospers when religion is vibrant and the rule of law under God is acknowledged.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  100. 100.

    We can not play innocents abroad in a world that is not innocent.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  101. 101.

    We can’t help everyone, but everyone can help someone.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  102. 102.

    My philosophy of life is that if we make up our mind what we are going to make of our lives, then work hard toward that goal, we never lose – somehow we win out.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  103. 103.

    Approximately 80% of our air pollution stems from hydrocarbons released by vegetation, so let’s not go overboard in setting and enforcing tough emission standards from man-made sources.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  104. 104.

    Governments tend not to solve problems, only to rearrange them.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  105. 105.

    Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  106. 106.

    The greatest security for Israel is to create new Egypts.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  107. 107.

    Without God, democracy will not and cannot long endure.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor

  108. 108.

    I call upon the scientific community in our country, those who gave us nuclear weapons, to turn their great talents now to the cause of mankind and world peace: to give us the means of rendering these nuclear weapons impotent and obsolete.

    Ronald Reagan

    president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor