A Tribute To Ronald Wilson Reagan
By Sam Weaver (06/14/04)
For four days, I fumbled for the right words and the correct way to pay homage to Ronald Wilson Reagan. How could I honor a man who united a nation during a time of “malaise” without sounding political or partisan in the midst of an election year? In this age of the Internet and 24-hour cable news cycles, how could I possibly express my appreciation for the ideals and the accomplishments of the greatest president of the twentieth century in words and ways that were not being articulated from the very moment the news of his passing was first broadcast?
Just when I thought I had found the right tack, Speaker Dennis Hastert stole my thunder. In his eulogy under the rotunda of the U. S. Capitol, drawing from President Reagan’s own words, Speaker Hastert honored Ronald Reagan simply by saying, “He was an American.” No greater tribute could have been declared.
Ronald Reagan believed in and trusted God. He had this idealistic—this “silly” and “fanciful”—notion that human rights are endowed by man’s Creator, NOT by governments or “leaders”. Rights—say, for example, private property or wealth generated by an individual through the sweat of his brow—were not for governments and/or courts to capriciously grant or to arbitrarily take away. The right to life (of an unborn child) is another example.
Ronald Reagan believed in the U. S. Constitution. He revered the Rule of Law. When persons within his administration allegedly circumvented the Boland Amendment, President Reagan launched a full investigation. [In my humble opinion, the Boland Amendment to the War Powers Resolution of 1973 was little more than a power grab by Congress to usurp constitutional powers from the office of the president. Alleged violations of the Boland Amendment were essentially what the whole “Iran-Contra Scandal” was all about.]
President Ronald Reagan believed in free-enterprise. He had enough faith in the American people to believe that they would do the right thing if they were unshackled from confiscatory taxation at one extreme; and were challenged to forego dependency upon the federal government at the other extreme. For this he was called “cold”, “heartless”, “cruel”, and “lacking compassion” by people who could never grasp either the Source or the method of the American Dream.
Reagan knew instinctively that knowledge and understanding comes only from liberty. Free people, when unhindered either by the fear of tyrannical oppression, heavy taxation or burdensome regulation always achieve great things. The economic boom of the 1980’s and the technology boom of the 1990’s were direct results of President Reagan’s (i. e., original American) economic policy and scientific philosophy.
Ronald Reagan’s philosophy—his ideas and his policies—were anchored in the Judeo-Christian worldview. (See www.renewamerica.us/columns/weaver/030206.) Reagan had something—maybe it was instinct, knowledge, faith, courage, innocence, or even naïveté—that made him believe in that original American worldview more than any other American president in memory. Those ideas and policies changed the world for the better.
I am just old enough to remember the state of affairs in the mid to late 1970’s. I didn’t really care about inflation and unemployment rates—I was only about 12. But I recall the long gas lines and the plight of the American hostages in Iran. I saw that rash on my Dad’s forehead when things got really stressful. (I caused that rash a time or two!) I remember quite vividly the nightmare that I had one night some 30 years ago. I dreamt that I was walking down a tree-lined street in my old hometown and witnessed two missiles wiz by overhead. Even at 10 or 12 years old, I was at least subconsciously very aware of the threat of nuclear annihilation from the evil empire!
The leadership of Ronald Wilson Reagan helped to change all of that. Reagan was able to change history because he was quintessentially American! He had faith in God, life, liberty, hard work, rugged individualism, and the American people. His ideals were founded upon his faith, and his policies reflected those ideals—original American ideals!
Looking back at the past few days, I’ve heard a great deal of reflection and commentary about the man, his vision, his ideals and his place in history. Mort Kondracke (managing editor of Roll Call Magazine) said that Ronald Reagan was in the “second tier” of American presidents. Kondracke placed George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Franklin D. Roosevelt in the first tier. Woodrow Wilson, Teddy Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan were in the second tier, according to Kondracke. Newt Gingrich said on one occasion that Ronald Reagan was “one of the two greatest presidents of the twentieth century.” On another occasion, I heard Speaker Gingrich proclaim that Reagan was the “second greatest president [behind FDR] of the twentieth century”.
I know that Gingrich is a history major. He surely knows far more about FDR than I do. (I’ve read many of FDR’s speeches, and was struck by how conservative most of them sounded!) However, both Mort Kondracke and Newt Gingrich place FDR in much higher esteem than do I. If both Mort & Newt were absolutely intellectually honest, I sincerely believe that they both would have to admit that FDR’s policies—while profoundly influential—were anathema to both the American Dream and the original American Ideal. (See www.renewamerica.us/columns/weaver/030816).
In my mind, Ronald Wilson Reagan was absolutely the greatest president of the twentieth century! In fact, I could present a very strong case to argue that Ronald Reagan is second only to George Washington in the order of greatest presidents of all time.
It is said that behind every great man there is a great woman. I could not possibly end a tribute to the second greatest American president without mentioning his beloved Nancy. I truly believe that Ronald Reagan would not have been the man that he was without the unconditional love, the support, the prodding and the advice that he received from his adored and adoring wife. The United States of America and the entire world lost a great leader, a giant, and a true American hero on June 5, 2004. Nancy Reagan lost her soul mate. May God Almighty richly bless—and His Spirit lovingly comfort—Mrs. Reagan until they meet again!
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