What Would Reagan Do?

"Don't be afraid to see what you see."--Ronald Reagan

"What would Reagan do?" That seems to be the standard among conservatives these days. Reagan's apparent brand of conservatism has become the ruler by which all other aspriring conservative leaders must be measured. Yesterday, I actually defended John McCain, not because he is my pick, quite the contrary actually, but because of the way he is being criticized by "hardcore conservatives." If they whip out the Ronald Reagan card one more time, I'm going to puke.

It's as if a collective amnesia plagues conservatives, in which they can only recall the big promises, high ideals, the inspiring speeches, and then completely disregard Reagan's actual ACTIONS once he got into office. I'm not implying that Reagan was a liar or a bad guy, but like most Presidents, he learned to compromise (such a dirty word, gasp!) and worked with the "other side" because the other side is comprised of Americans, too. But Reagan's legacy is being held up as proof that real conservatives will support deporting all illegal immigrants, will NEVER raise taxes, will slash government 'entitlement' programs, will drastically reduce the size of the federal governemnt, will appoint judges that are committed to make abortion illegal (I wish that one were true), and would NEVER "cut-and-run" like those cowardly democrats.

But consider these aspects of Reagan's Presidency:

On Illegal Immigration

Illegal immigration is the hot-button topic among conservatives (and the most potent reason for their opposition to McCain). Ironically, Reagan not only supported a pathway for illegal aliens to earn citizenship, but signed "amnesty" into law in 1986. Does this quote sound like something current conservatives would jive with?

“We have consistently supported a legalization program which is both generous to the alien and fair to the countless thousands of people throughout the world who seek legally to come to America. The legalization provisions in this act will go far to improve the lives of a class of individuals who now must hide in the shadows, without access to many of the benefits of a free and open society. Very soon many of these men and women will be able to step into the sunlight and, ultimately, if they choose, they may become Americans.”--Ronald Reagan, upon signing the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986.

Reagan's immigration stance was not an automatic path to citizenship. The legislation stipulated several conditions: immigrants had to pay application fees, learn to speak English, understand American civics, pass a medical exam, and register for military selective service. Those with convictions for a felony or three misdemeanors were ineligible. Sound familiar? These are pretty much the same provisions included in the bill John McCain supported to promote a secured border, take away incentives for employers to hire illegals, but also provide a pragmatic solution for long-time illegals to earn citizenship through a series of fines, going to "the back of the line" for citizenship, having to maintain employment, etc. etc.

Black's Law Dictionary even notes that "the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act provided amnesty for undocumented aliens already in the country."

On Abortion

Reagan signed California's 1967 Therapeutic Abortion Act on June 14, 1967. From a total of 518 legal abortions in California in 1967, the number of abortions would soar to an annual average of 100,000 in the remaining years of Reagan’s two terms — more abortions than in any U.S. state prior to the implications of Roe v. Wade.

Once Reagan was President, he appointed Sandra Day O'Connor to the Supreme Court. This move puzzled and dismayed conservatives (especially the Jerry Falwell crowd that campaigned for Regean in the hopes that he would do everything within his power to make abortion illegal).

Joshua Green, editor of Washington Monthly, recalls the confusion and opposition over Reagan's unexpected judicial appointment:

President Reagan, however, did not govern as radically as candidate Reagan preached. Reagan’s appointment of Sandra Day O’Connor infuriated conservatives, who doubted her commitment to eradicating abortion and blasted her support for the Equal Rights Amendment. Michael K. Deaver, the image-oriented deputy chief of staff, and a principal White House pragmatist, said the president liked O’Connor’s “kind of moderate approach'' because ''she had not been an activist'' regarding the ERA issue or abortion. Delighting in the man-bites-dog political twist, the Washington Post headline proclaimed: “REAGAN CHOICE FOR COURT DECRIED BY CONSERVATIVES BUT ACCLAIMED BY LIBERALS."

On Taxes

1982: Reagan signed into law two major tax increases. The Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act (TEFRA) raised taxes by $37.5 billion per year and the Highway Revenue Act raised the gasoline tax by another $3.3 billion. In 2003, former Reagan adviser Bruce Bartlett wrote in the National Review: "According to a recent Treasury Department study, TEFRA alone raised taxes by almost 1 percent of the gross domestic product, making it the largest peacetime tax increase in American history."

1983: Reagan signed legislation raising the Social Security tax rate. This is a tax increase that is still in place. It initiated automatic increases in the taxable wage base. As a consequence, those with moderately high earnings see their payroll taxes rise every single year. In

Bruce Barlett also admits that:

In 1984, Reagan signed another big tax increase in the Deficit Reduction Act. This raised taxes by $18 billion per year or 0.4 percent of GDP. A similar-sized tax increase today would be about $44 billion. The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 raised taxes yet again. Even the Tax Reform Act of 1986, which was designed to be revenue-neutral, contained a net tax increase in its first 2 years. And the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 raised taxes still more.

Joshua Green adds,

He [Reagan] did not always instigate those hikes or agree to them willingly--but he signed off on them. One year after his massive tax cut, Reagan agreed to a tax increase to reduce the deficit that restored fully one-third of the previous year's reduction. (In a bizarre bit of self-deception, Reagan, who never came to terms with this episode of ideological apostasy, persuaded himself that the three-year, $100 billion tax hike--the largest since World War II--was actually "tax reform" that closed loopholes in his earlier cut and therefore didn't count as raising taxes.)

On "Cut-and-Running..."

He pulled a "cut and run" in 1983 after 241 American servicemen died in Beirut during the suicide bombing of the Marine barracks. The realization that they were in the middle of a civil war and were in over their heads trying to control middle eastern politics lead to Reagan withdrawing our troops....

How history repeats itself.

And because history repeats itself, it's imperative that people living in the present do not forget it or rewrite it to accomadate our own agendas. Instead of turning flawed human beings into untouchable, idealistic figure heads to sanctify our own ideology, we should learn from the mistakes of the past, learn the difference between principle-clad rhetoric and real-life dilemmas that are no where near as cut and dry or always require the same response. We should recognize that such labels as "conservative" and "liberal" are broad terms, subject to debate, and leave room for some diversity. Geesh, Ronald Reagan himself doesn't even live up to "Ronald Reagan Conservatism!"

So, know what you believe, know why you believe it, and be fair to those with whom you disagree.