On Hannity & Colmes last night Oliver North sought to portray Barack Obama as an "empty suit," at which point Democratic political strategist Bob Beckel erupted, "That's what they said about Ronald Reagan." Beckel went on to make the case that Obama's candidacy resembles the Reagan candidacy of 1980.
Is it possible that Barack Hussein Obama is the next Ronald Wilson Reagan? Well, Reagan too was a strong advocate for "change." When Reagan ran for office the economy was in a shambles. Inflation was in double digits, growth was stagnant, interest rates were high, and the stock market was barely higher than it was a decade earlier. Abroad, the Soviet bear had gobbled up 10 countries between 1974 and 1980. There were 100,000 Soviet troops in Afghanistan. In Iran, U.S. policy had helped topple the Shah and usher in the Ayatollah Khomeini. Hostages were being held by Islamic radicals. President Carter diagnosed Americans as suffering from a kind of national depression which he called "malaise." Clearly change was in order.
But Reagan was a man of large ideas. He positioned his career against the big idea of the twentieth century, namely collectivism. Reagan saw collectivism in a menacing Soviet empire abroad, and an expanding welfare state at home. When I first came to America the national ethos had been set by John F. Kennedy who told young people that if they were idealistic and caring, they should join the Peace Corps. To Kennedy it was the government servant who was the true noble American. Reagan disputed this. To him it was not the bureaucrat but the entrepreneur who was the embodiment of American idealism and greatness. Reagan sought to bring about a cultural shift in America in which parents would rather see their children become inventors and business owners rather than paper-pushers in the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Reagan also had concrete ideas about how to bring about his grand aspirations. He sought to roll back the Soviet empire by deploying Pershing and Cruise missiles in Europe. He sought to deploy missile defenses to shoot down Soviet missiles and also to invite the Russians into a defensive arms race that he knew they couldn't win. He proposed bringing the top marginal tax rate down from 70 percent to 28 percent. He proposed a 30 percent across-the-board tax cut. He sought a restrictive monetary policy to wring inflation out of the economy, combined with tax cuts to unleash entrepreneurial initiative. He backed privatization of government activities that could be better performed by the private sector.
Let's leave aside Reagan's astounding accomplishments in actually getting his ideas implemented, and the great political and cultural revolution they produced. Let's just focus on the fact that Reagan had the vision and he had the specific policies to produce it. Where is Obama's vision for America that goes beyond "bringing us together"? How exactly does Obama propose to do this? What are his imaginative fiscal and monetary proposals? If Obama wants to get troops out of Iraq, what is his alternative strategy for winning the war against radical Islam? Does he have anything more to offer other than the vacuous "really going after Bin Laden"? To ask these questions is to answer them.
The conventional wisdom is that it would be harder for John McCain to beat Hillary Clinton than it would be for him to beat Barack Obama. From what we've seen of Obama so far, this is not so. But it may be useful for let Democrats think this. The party that by all reckoning should win the White House in November may yet snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
Reader Comments ( Page 2 of 24)
16. all liberals need is a hero,
4 years ago it was kerry, he was the liberal savior, before that it was spotted algore he was their savior, before that it was bill clinton and the lisat goes on. barak hussien obama is their latest battle cry. and i have not heard idea 1. but then liberals don't need ideas they just need an enemy and in this country its the conservatives. usually christian and usually hated with a passion by the liberals. and then there is the buzz word to end all buzz words-TOLERANCE!!! yes the liberal left is fond of that word. i think this country is divided because the left wants to take us down a morally decadent and repugnant road while the conservatives want to honor our heritage,keep the family strong and bring decency back to the streets of america. we will sure need to muster the votes to squelch the challenge the liberal machine is mounting
brian at 2:27PM on Mar 7th 2008
17. IT LOOKS LIKE HILLARY IS MUCH BETTER AT JUDGING PEOPLE BY CHOOSING PEOPLE WHO SAY APPROPRIATE THINGS.
WHAT IF THIS "MONSTER" COMMENT HAD BEEN SAID DURING OBAMA'S FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH OTHER LEADERS.
IS THIS HOW OBAMA OR THE PEOPLE HE HIRED TO REPRESENT HIM WILL HANDLE LEADERS THAT THEY DON'T AGREE WITH?
OUCH!
new2008america at 3:10PM on Mar 7th 2008
18. ajock8 drooled: "Reagan was either so incredibly slow to recognize the seriousness of the AIDS epidemic or was so beholden to his Christian Right base that he helped to exacerbate the devastation that the AIDS crisis has wreaked on society."
That's a damn lie. Those of us who were alive in the early 80s remember *just* how loudly the gays SCREAMED at the thought of the bathhouses being shut down. It was the homosexual Left's REFUSAL to address their own behavior that helped spread AIDS, not anything a politician or minister did.
Robeson at 2:38PM on Mar 7th 2008
19. I like how everyone has bought into the whole "Obama is just a speech maker! He has no plans!" idea just because Hillary Clinton said it. Watch a debate sometime. Look up some authored bills sometime. Or easiest of all, you could check out the 60 page .pdf file on his site that describes in legislative detail how he "goes beyond 'Bringing us together'".
Hooray for the selective ignorance of Obama's opponents.
http://www.barackobama.com/issues/
Obama 08', because he has the plan everyone keeps asking for, but chooses to not see.
Will at 2:46PM on Mar 7th 2008
20.
U.S. Senator John McCain - Arizona
First 100 Days in Office Plan :
1.Illegal Immigration: Close the border down with troops and a complete fence. Activate instant Social Security Number check. Enforce fines and other laws against employers hiring illegal immigrants. Provide free transport home to any illegal who turns themselves into Ice.
2.National Debt of 9 Trillion Dollars: This debt is a burden on the American People and the U.S. Government. It must be paid off now. I will ask the Congress to pass a 1% fee on all wholesale goods transactions. This money will go directly to the Treasury and be used solely for paying off the National Debt. When this has been accomplished all moneys collected by this fee will then be used to set up a Social Security lock box fund. This money will be used to pay off all the money the Government has borrowed from Social Security since 1966. The money cannot be used for any other purpose. Congress will have no access to this money at any time.
3.Auto Industry Revitalization: I will Hold a Public Summit meeting with all US Auto Makers and the UAW. This will be to discuss how best to pay for changing the US Auto Industry from steel panel construction to Carbon Panel construction on all new cars. At present, technology exists to cut half the weight off of cars, thus doubling the gas mileage. This same Carbon Panel technology is also 5 times stronger then steel. The cost of these carbon panels is the same as or less then steel. We can have lighter, stronger and more fuel efficient cars within two years. The main draw back is tooling the old steel stamping plants into new Carbon Panel plants. This is a major expense for an industry that is down on its heels. The summit will find a way to pay for this and make the USA the leading car manufacturer once again. The jobs created by this will be numerous and and should spread to all 50 states in a short period of time.
4.Alternative Energy Summit: This summit will be held to coordinate all Federal and State alternative energy plans as well as to consolidate buying power. The cost of alternative energy is too high. This is due to the bizarre web of taxpayer credits and write offs. The alternative energy company's are milking this confusion for all it is worth. I would propose that all the moneys in all the plans be consolidated and the one buyer use its purchasing power to drive prices down. The purchased products could then be passed onto the tax payer at cost plus reasonable handling fee. This would spur alternative energy company growth as well bring many new company's on line. The end result will be a huge decrease in carbon gases, a lowering of prices by at least half, a cutting of the need to build new power plants.
5.Oil price Summit: Within days of taking office I will order the Justice Department to investigate price fixing in all commodities markets. It has been obvious for far too long that these markets are being manipulated and the American taxpayer is getting the bill. I will then hold an open summit with oil company leaders and congressional leaders. The oil company leaders will be asked to make their best case for drilling in all known areas in the US that contain oil and natural gas. The congress will have to mandate environmental safe guards but still listen to what really needs to be done. For far too long oil and gas drilling has been turned into an us against them political game. It shouldn't be. Because the Football ends up being the American taxpayers wallet. This has to stop. Now.
6.Taxes: At this time, with the country heading into a natural down turn in growth it would be unwise to raise taxes. As many before me have done, I will try and come up with a better tax system. All input will be welcomed and accepted. Hopefully, we can put aside partisan bickering and get the job done this time.
7.Trade Agreements: Trade helps the US grow. To restrain trade borders on economic suicide. The last time this country did that we got the Great Depression and then WW2. Lets not go there again, Please. I do agree that new trade agreements, unlike the past agreements of Nafta and WTO with China, both passed by the Clinton administration have serious short comings. If a trade agreement is going to devastate an American industry then it shouldn't be passed without helping the people in that industry retrain or reeducate for another industry. It is nice to have low priced goods available for the American people. But you have to have Americans who can afford to buy them. Under WTO with China this is the case. Additionally China has not lived up to its end of the agreement. I will give China 90 days to get into compliance and then I will start enforcing the agreement to the letter. If China has a problem with this they can always end the agreement.
8.The War on Terror: All the Hope in the World won't get Radical Islam to Change. These Terrorists are bent on destroying western civilization, human rights, constitutional rights, religious freedom and just about every other right you can think of. They want to take the world back to the 6th century enslave all women and kill anyone who doesn't agree with them. The war against this tyranny will continue under my administration. All input and advice as to real solutions will also be listened to and good ideas will be acted on. But to surrender and then try and hide behind the oceans of the world is not an alternative.
9.Health Care Price Reform: The best way to lower health insurance costs is to break up the Health Care Industry monopoly. I would due this by giving every American a Tax Credit to buy health insurance with. All Americans making less then 250 thousand dollars a year down to zero will be eligible for this. I will then instruct congress to rewrite health insurance laws. The new laws would allow anyone to buy insurance from any company in the fifty states. Company plans would not be allowed. pre-existing condition exclusions. Every citizen would be responsible for buying their own plan. All company's would be required to offer a family plan to any two people calling themselves a family and living under the same roof for more then 1 year.
10.Infrastructure Repair: The National US infrastructure is in great need of repair. A funding source thats inviolate is needed. This will guarantee continuity in repairs. At present this problem has turned into a Pork barrel from hell in the Congress. I will have the appropriate agency's work together and come up with a list of what needs to be repaired and or replaced and in what order it should be done. To pay for this I will ask the Congress to enact the following fees. A $2.00 dollar fee on all new individual tire sales. A 25 cent fee on all quarts of oil. A 1% fee on all sales of wholesale auto and truck parts. 25% of these fees will be set aside for mass transit repair and or replacement. Once these fees are in place Congress will have no control of the money. The money will disbursed according to the agreed on punch list of repairs and or replacements by the agency's directly in charge of the projects. The Congress will hold oversight hearings every 6 months to check on progress and question all associated costs. Congress will have the power to shut down for cause any run away project such as the Big Dig if they are not satisfied that the Tax Payer is getting their moneys worth.
doc at 2:43PM on Mar 7th 2008
21. Thank God, we cannot have another 4 or 8 years of "Trickel Down" or voodoo Economics.
We have had enough of the republican insanity for a lifetime. This is why Obama has swept through America like a hurricane. We are so hungry for change and to earn back the reputation we once had among the other nations,
Reagan was no saint and is not the great man that so many repubs claim he was. I grew up in a very conservative household and Reagan was heralded as a "godlike" figue. It wasn't til I learned more about world affairs and politics that I discovered that he did not end the Cold War as we were lead to believe. His tax cuts and Union Busting were not beneficial to the Middle Class. His perpetual fear mongering and nuclear arms race did not help the common american...
We do not want more reaganeque policies. we do not need more Bush policies...we need to fix America. It is broken! We are not number one in so many areas and that is ok. We just need to get back to American ideals and values that Bush has abandoned for torture and fear mongering
Erik Earl at 2:53PM on Mar 7th 2008
22. Perhaps someone will refresh my memory as to what outstanding social programs Ronald Reagan was responsible for.
Jerry Brown at 2:48PM on Mar 7th 2008
23. That's quite a field of presidential canidates we have Denish...Hillary, Barack and McCain. It would be easier to compare this group to the Three Stooges, Curly, Larry and Moe.
Think about it, that 3AM phone call to the White House...Hillary's going to put them on hold until she finds Bill; Barack going to invite them over for dinner in the Rose Garden and McCain's going to yell "don't shoot and we'll give you amnesty."
Willet at 2:51PM on Mar 7th 2008
24. And by "decency" you mean what YOU consider to be decent, correct? To "tolerate" is to co-exist. "Tolerate" does not mean you endorse it or agree with it, it just means you are willing to let people live their own lives the way they want to, whether you agree with it or not. And that's what liberals stand for. FREEDOM to live how you choose without being told by people like brian how you should think, look, act, pray, and have sex.
K at 2:52PM on Mar 7th 2008
25. John Galt said it very well, the Soviet Union's collapse resulted from its history, not from anything that Reagan did. His biggest asset was that he made some people "feel better." So does cocaine. In this respect, Reagan was the political equivalent to the drug pusher.
And doc, I'm glad you're not running for president.
David at 8:18PM on Mar 9th 2008
26. Comment #22 was aimed at brian's post #16, just to be clear.
"Those of us who were alive in the early 80s remember *just* how loudly the gays SCREAMED at the thought of the bathhouses being shut down. It was the homosexual Left's REFUSAL to address their own behavior that helped spread AIDS, not anything a politician or minister did.
Robeson at 2:38PM on Mar 7th 2008"
Robeson,
Closing bath houses would in no way stop the problem, because knowledge of how the disease spreads and safe sex education is the only answer. Closing bath houses was just a knee-jerk reaction to fear.
K at 2:57PM on Mar 7th 2008
27. And that's what liberals stand for. FREEDOM to live how you choose without being told by people like brian how you should think, look, act, pray, and have sex.
K at 2:52PM on Mar 7th 2008
One of these things doesn't belong with the others. When it comes to public health and safety issues there should be no tolerance for irresponsibility. Everyone is only as tolerant as they want to be, even liberals, if someone set up a band in their garage and played loud music right next to your bedroom window all night, how tolerant would you be? They are expressing their freedom and aren't hurting anyone.
STaylor at 3:03PM on Mar 7th 2008
28. Comments such as , "for the first time, I am proud to be an American" and comments like, "she (HRC) voted wrong!" (meaning for Iraq invasion). Poor soldiers in Iraq, smacks of the Vietnam era spitting on soldiers as they returned from war. Then seeing the video clip of his not honoring the pledge of allegiance. Whats up! The republicans will slam him for this. He will not be electable.
Little Rock 2008 at 3:33PM on Mar 7th 2008
29. I heard it was the National Anthem, not the Pledge. If there really is a video, that will answer the confusion.
Mokele-Mobembe at 3:25PM on Mar 7th 2008
30. Little Rock,
Proud to be an American brings back the memory of G W Bush when he was running for office in 2000 saying he would make us proud to be an American AGAIN. What did he mean implying we were not proud to be Americans?
Jerry Brown at 3:28PM on Mar 7th 2008