Reagan, reconsidered

Saturday, Feb. 5, 2011 | 2:01 a.m.

Republicans are gathering this weekend at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of nation’s 40th president. They will kick off a series of events to commemorate the life of the man known as the “Great Communicator.”

A tireless campaigner and eloquent speaker, Reagan won the presidential election in 1980 and revitalized a Republican Party that had been hobbled by the Watergate scandal. An enthusiastic optimist, he painted a picture of a better America, and the so-called Reagan Revolution was launched, based on the amiable president’s ability to articulate his strong conservative beliefs.

Since his presidency, Reagan’s name has been invoked regularly in Republican circles, but his name has been stretched to represent a philosophy he didn’t necessarily espouse.

Today, the conservative icon simply isn’t conservative enough. Political strategist Mark McKinnon, who has worked for the past two Republican presidential nominees, told USA Today that, “Given the current poisonous and partisan political environment we live in, I doubt Ronald Reagan would be elected today.”

That’s because the Republican Party, steeped in tea, has veered far to the right. Reagan couldn’t pass a litmus test on many issues. For example:

• Taxes: Many Republicans now demand a “no new taxes” pledge, and although Reagan slashed taxes after he took office, he wasn’t “pure.” When he saw the size of the deficit increase, fueled by the cuts, he agreed to raise taxes — even as the unemployment rate neared 10 percent. And he didn’t raise taxes just once. Overall, Reagan raised taxes 11 times, including on Social Security.

• Spending: Today’s Republicans bash government spending, and they have decried the size of the deficit. Under Reagan, government grew and budgets ballooned. And the federal deficit hit new records. Former Republican Vice President Dick Cheney once said that Reagan “taught us that deficits don’t matter.”

• Immigration: Reagan supported a major immigration bill that included amnesty for people here illegally, something that is anathema to the Tea Party. “I believe in the idea of amnesty for those who have put down roots and lived here, even though sometime back they may have entered illegally,” Reagan said during the 1984 campaign. Former Republican Sen. Alan Simpson of Wyoming told NPR that Reagan “knew that it was not right for people to be abused. Anybody who’s here illegally is going to be abused in some way, either financially (or) physically. They have no rights.” So Reagan provided them.

• Compromise: Republicans and Tea Party acolytes have, in many ways, embarked on a take-no-prisoners approach to politics, viciously bashing opponents. Reagan certainly was a partisan and engaged in tough political battles, especially with Democratic leaders in Congress, but he was never characterized by demonizing his opponents. Although strongly principled, he engaged his opponents and often worked to find common ground. James Baker, a former chief of staff, told USA Today when he and the president talked about issues Reagan was “so pragmatic” and often told him, “I would rather get 80 percent of what I want than go over the cliff with my flag flying.” On the campaign trail, Reagan was a strong advocate for his party. But Walter Mondale, who ran on the Democratic ticket in both 1980 and 1984, told McClatchy Newspapers that Reagan “never got mean, he never got bitter, he never got personal.”

Reagan reshaped his party and became the symbol of Republican success. But since he left office in 1989, the party has changed significantly, shifting farther to the right, becoming more rigid and ideological. Republicans want to recapture his success, but instead of imitating him, they're mythologizing him because he doesn't fit in anymore.