Plus ca change…

Comments

1. JOB says

   February 11, 2011 at 2:47 pm

   Matthew,

   Alright, I’ll be your Dope.

   Reagan (who had early on made noise about putting the Dept. of Education and Dept. of Energy on the chopping block (sigh…)) had to make a Lady-or-Tiger choice between spending political capital with the Democratically controlled Congress on the foreign policy issues or the domestic policy issues. History has perhaps already borne out whether he opened the right door.

   Was the bailout referred to in the cartoon precipitated by Democratic policies or Republican? I can’t say – but regardless it would be interesting to see evidence.

   In the mean time, what historian Stephen Ambrose had to say about the Gipper’s legacy is revealing:

   “Historians will also stress the gap between Reagan’s domestic goals and his accomplishments. Most obvious is the deficit; what he promised to eliminate he has allowed to swell beyond comprehension. On the social agenda, abortion remains legal, prayer in the schools illegal. Reagan’s failure in the war against drugs and related crime activities is so great that drugs were the number one issue in the 1988 presidential campaign. Nevertheless, Reagan will be remembered as the president who reversed the decades-old flow of power to Washington. By dismantling some federal programs, and reducing others, he forced the states and the cities to assume more responsibility for running their own shows. If he failed to break the Democratic hold on Congress, he did force the Democratic Party to move to the right.”

   And the Rope?

   JOB

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