Biography of ronald reagan

For example, sentencing guidelines that meant that someone 5 grams two sugar packets worth of crack received an automatic five years in prison. First Lady Nancy Reagan was active in raising its profile across America. On immigration Reagan was relatively liberal; in , he allowed 3 million existing illegal immigrants to claim US citizenship.

To stem further illegal immigrants, he passed a law to make it illegal to employ illegal immigrants. In economics, he took a hard-line against trades unions, he implemented income tax cuts and attempted to reduce government spending. The idea that if the wealthy become better off, wealth and income will trickle down to all in society. However, Reagan claimed strong economic growth during the s was a vindication of his economic policies.

Reagan benefited from a fall in oil prices and the economic boom of the s, which saw rising real incomes. But, the period also saw an increase rise in inequality with the gap between high earners and low earners increasing significantly. Reagan was a fierce anti-communist all his life. Military strength. However, while expanding the Star Wars programme, Reagan outlined his approach to foreign policy.

We will never be an aggressor. Several treaties were signed which reduced the nuclear arsenals of both sides. In , Reagan visited the Soviet Union, where he was well received. Gorbachev, open this gate! Gorbachev, tear down this wall! Ten months after he left office, in , the Berlin wall did come down and the cold-war was officially declared over at a conference in Malta.

As President, Reagan also supported aiding anti-communist movements across the world. The aim was to overturn any regime allied to the Soviet Union. Some of these anti-communist movements were also accused of severe human rights violations. These campaigns were funded secretly and supported by the CIA; this included supporting Afghan forces fighting the Soviet Union.

Though ironically, these US weapons were later used by the Taliban against US forces who went to Afghanistan in the s. In , the CIA was involved in clandestine activity in selling arms to Iran and using the proceeds to fund anti-Communist Contras in Nicaragua; this was made public in the Iran-Contra scandal. This had been outlawed by an act of Congress, but CIA had undertaken it on its own initiative.

Regan denied direct knowledge. 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 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 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. During his second term, Reagan forged a diplomatic relationship with the reform-minded Mikhail Gorbachev , who became leader of the Soviet Union in In , the Americans and Soviets signed a historic agreement to eliminate intermediate-range nuclear missiles.

Twenty-nine months later, Gorbachev allowed the people of Berlin to dismantle the wall. After leaving the White House, Reagan returned to Germany in September —just weeks before Germany was officially reunified—and took several symbolic swings with a hammer at a remaining chunk of the wall. In November , Ronald Reagan was reelected in a landslide, defeating Walter Mondale and his running mate Geraldine Ferraro , the first female vice-presidential candidate from a major U.

Reagan was given a state funeral in Washington, D. Nancy Reagan died of heart failure in at age 94 and was buried alongside her husband. You can opt out at any time. You must be 16 years or older and a resident of the United States. Your Profile. Email Updates.

Biography of ronald reagan

Read more. President Reagan Shot. Americans reelected Reagan by a landslide in largely because of the economic turnaround and the perception that he was a steady leader. The nation's economy continued to expand during Reagan's second term, as did the budget deficits and the national debt. While all income levels gained from the new prosperity, Reagan's critics claimed that the wealthy were disproportionately benefited.

It was in foreign affairs that Reagan had his greatest successes—and also his greatest setback. He worked diligently with the Soviet Union's new reform-minded leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, to improve superpower relations. The crucial product of their negotiations was the Intermediate Nuclear Forces INF treaty, the first treaty of the Cold War to reduce the number of nuclear missiles rather than stabilizing them at higher levels.

The INF treat paved the way for other agreements that reduced the nuclear arsenals of the superpowers. As Gorbachev wrote, "it is difficult to overestimate the significance of this step. Reagan's reputation was tarnished when the public learned in late that members of the President's National Security Council staff had engineered an arms sale to Iran, then involved in a bloody war with Iraq, in an ill-conceived attempt to win the release of Americans held hostage in Lebanon.

Some of the proceeds from the arms sales were funneled to rebels "Contras" opposing the Marxist government of Nicaragua. The two events became known as the Iran-Contra affair. This scandal bedeviled Reagan during the last years of his presidency, but did not overshadow his monumental accomplishments in the Cold War. Many years later, the independent counsel who had been appointed to investigate the Iran-Contra affair concluded that there was no evidence Reagan knew that proceeds from the arms sales had been diverted to the Contras.

Reagan left office in January , handing the presidency over to his favored successor, Vice President George H. Polls showed that Reagan had the highest approval rating of any departing President since Franklin D. In , Reagan announced that he was suffering from Alzheimer's disease. As he battled this affliction out of the public eye, his reputation among Americans grew.

It culminated in a bipartisan and international outpouring of sentiment at a state funeral after Reagan died on June 5, Grant Rutherford B. Hayes James A. Garfield Chester A. Roosevelt Harry S. Truman Dwight D. Eisenhower John F. Kennedy Lyndon B. Bush Bill Clinton George W. Upcoming Events Past Events Donate. Help inform the discussion Support the Miller Center.