Peggy Noonan Strikes Back at Andrea Mitchell's Claim 'Republicans Are Trying to Appropriate Reagan'

By Noel Sheppard | February 06, 2011 | 17:54

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NBC's Andrea Mitchell on Sunday made the preposterous claim that Republicans are trying to appropriate Ronald Reagan for their own political purposes.

Appearing on "Meet the Press" with Mitchell, former Reagan speechwriter Peggy Noonan struck back and struck back hard (video follows with transcript and commentary):

DAVID GREGORY, HOST: Willie Brown, let's talk about politics. Let's talk about the view of government that is being debated in our country right now. And Ronald Reagan, January 20th, 1981, his inaugural address, pretty much made clear his view of government. Watch this.

(Videotape, January 20, 1981)

PRES. RONALD REAGAN: In this present crisis government is not the solution to our problem. Government is the problem.

(End videotape)

MR. GREGORY: Isn't this the very debate that we are having today in our debate over spending, debate over role of government in this economy?

WILLIE BROWN, FORMER MAYOR SAN FRANCISCO: It is the debate we are having today. But, you know, 1981 was a far cry from when Ronald Reagan actually started in government. It was 1966, 1967. And at that time period, he was not mouthing those kinds of words. Apparently Peggy wasn't writing for him at that time, and therefore he wasn't saying those kinds of words. He really learned about government and the operation of government and what government could or could not do in the eight years that he spent as a governor of the state of California. And they were really incredible learning years for this extraordinary, gifted person. So it doesn't surprise me in 1981 he would be saying the words that we're still living with and trying to address today.

MR. GREGORY: And as much as modern-day conservatives, Andrea Mitchell, may take that sentence from his inaugural as gospel and run on that in their own debates with President Obama in Washington today, indeed Reagan was much more of a pragmatist than he was an ideologue when it came to the major issues.

ANDREA MITCHELL, NBC: Absolutely.

MR. GREGORY: Taxes, Social Security, and the like.

MS. MITCHELL: I mean, he said, "This is--the sound you hear around my feet is the concrete breaking around my feet," whatever the exact words were. People are trying--Republicans in particular, obviously--trying to appropriate Ronald Reagan for their own political purposes now. But his vision and his ability to work across party lines was so far broader. He stuck to his principles. He was authentic, which is I think one of the reasons why he's so admired after all of these years. But he knew when he needed to compromise, and he did. And he reached out with Democrats, not just the boll weevils who were the conservative Texas Democrats, but with Tip O'Neill and liberal Massachusetts Democrats as well when he needed to get something done with the help the really--the guidance of people like Jim Baker. But the genius of it all was that Ed Meese was there, there were conservatives there, and, and Jim Baker, more moderate Republicans. And it was a bit messy at times, but he had a range of views. And Nancy Reagan bringing even more people in to the--into play.

MR. GREGORY: Would he think the tea party was up...

PEGGY NOONAN, FORMER REAGAN SPEECHWRITER: I got to--whoa, whoa, whoa. Republicans are not, I think, trying to appropriate Ronald Reagan. Ronald Reagan was a Republican. Conservatives aren't trying to appropriate him. He was a conservative. Willie, he became a public figure in America two years before he was governor in 1964, and he laid out a speech as stern, if not sterner, in its conservatism in which he explained his views on taxes, "Cut them"; his views on the size of government, "Too big, too bullying"; his views on the Soviet Union, "Hold it back, it is expansionist." This was all very clear. As a president, as a governor, he was pragmatic in his operation.

Indeed. NewsBusters shared with readers on Sunday the very speech Noonan was referring to, and it was classic Reagan conservatism making you wonder what Brown and Mitchell were talking about.

Or maybe not.

After all, it is the Left and their media minions in recent months as the 100th anniversary of Reagan's birth approached that have been trying to not only appropriate him by making him look like more of a moderate than he was, but also working to paint the current White House resident in the Gipper's image to assist him in his re-election efforts.

Even worse, all this gushing and fawning from folks like Mitchell go counter to years of media attacks against our 40th President:

After years of bashing Reagan, the press suddenly think the way to get the current White House resident re-elected is by showing esteem for the Gipper while casting him as being very much like Obama.

Fortunately for "Meet the Press" viewers Sunday, Noonan wasn't having any of it.

Neither are we.

Nice job of sticking up for your former boss, Peggy. Brava!

About the Author

Noel Sheppard is the Associate Editor of NewsBusters. Click here to follow Noel Sheppard on Twitter.

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Comments

Noonan Suffers from Multiple Personality Disorder

Submitted by Tenebrous on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 6:09pm.

I bet "Meet the Press" was surprised that her conservative personality was doing the talking today. I sure was.

---- Let us all eviscerate the trolls and fill their carcasses with bile and venom.
Visions and Principles blog

Nose Direction

Submitted by Caringwhiteguy on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 6:37pm.

On those rare days when Noonan's nose is not turned up too high, nor her tone too snooty, nor her need for acceptance from her upper-crust pals too addicting, she can actually make some sense.

Haughty Peggy Noonan is a perfect fit for the "No Label"

Submitted by Rush Fan on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 3:22am.

(can't we all get along) movement. Snooty is an apt description for a woman who described Sarah Palin like this:

In television interviews she was out of her depth in a shallow pool. She was limited in her ability to explain and defend her positions, and sometimes in knowing them. She couldn't say what she read because she didn't read anything. She was utterly unconcerned by all this and seemed in fact rather proud of it: It was evidence of her authenticity. She experienced criticism as both partisan and cruel because she could see no truth in any of it. She wasn't thoughtful enough to know she wasn't thoughtful enough. Her presentation up to the end has been scattered, illogical, manipulative and self-referential to the point of self-reverence.

Rush Limbaugh said the following regarding Peggy Noonan:

If you want Peggy Noonan on your side, just say we've got to stop fighting, we have to work together and you'll get her. You want David Brooks on your side, same thing. You want Republican RINO media on your side, just say, we gotta change, we have to stop, we can't keep going on this way, all this partisanship.

Frankly, I feel the same way about Peggy Noonan as I do about John McCain. I can't stand either of them!

Why Obama 'hearts' Reagan

Submitted by Gary Hall on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 6:12pm.

Oh shucks, and all week long, I thought that Democrats and the Obama administration were trying to appropriate Ronald Reagan for their own political purposes.

You know like this, "Why Obama 'hearts' Reagan"

I'd note that in the Time cover photo, photoshopping Reagan's arm around Obama's [left] shoulder, is more than a bit slick.

(;~> gary

Totally agree. Remember

Submitted by WarEagle66 on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 7:06pm.

Totally agree.

Remember when the Leftists all made great sport of Reagan when he died? I do. They did it on TV, on the radio, on the late night talk shows. They were all over making fun of him.

I don't care a hoot about what Andrea or Willie think....

WarEagle66...

Submitted by Grumpy in Arizona on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 11:25am.

“…when he died? ... They were all over making fun of him.”

I remember as well! I also remember watching as tens of thousands (if not hundreds of thousands) lined the California highways as his casket took the final journey to his resting place.

"I wish I had an answer to that because I'm tired of answering that question." - Yogi Berra, (Baseball Great and Philosopher)

You're right, Gary

Submitted by Galvanic on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 11:50am.

The Democrats demonized Reagan before, during, and after his Administration, and when it came to bashing Republicans, they instinctively attacked them with the Reagan label. To be a Republican was to be a warmongering, minority-hindering Reagan-ite.

But now they want us to see their flawed President Obama as some sort of user-friendly Reagan figure, and separate the stoic national Cold War leader Reagan from the satanic conservative 'idoit' Reagan. Mitchell is totally ridiculous in her slam on the Republicans.

For all her Beltway-bred faults, Noonan is quite right this time. Reagan was a Republican and a conservative and made no bones about being them, though I would argue that he wasn't as effective on containing Big Government as people are apt to remember him being. For a clown like Mitchell to accuse the GOP of wrongfully co-opting Reagan's legacy is absurd on its face.

How can you "appropriate" something...

Submitted by PrairieSky on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 6:11pm.

that is already yours?? Ronald Reagan was a Republican and a conservative...He was the president of all Americans, but he was a conservative Republican and was one of us.

Mitchell has got it backwards, the twit...The Dems are the ones who are trying to appropriate Reagan and his popular legacy...Obama and the libnuts are doing everything they can to try to attach themselves to and co-opt Reagan, in the hopes that Reagan's popularity will somehow rub off on Obama...Good luck with that one because it ain't gonna happen. The only things Obama and Reagan have in common is that they're both Americans and have both been president...Beyond that, these two men couldn't be more different.

I'm not always a fan of Peggy Noonan, but I'm very happy to see that she let Mitchell have it in this exchange...Good for her.

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction...It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them (our children) to do the same." ~President Ronald Reagan

I remember just a couple of years ago

Submitted by Quasi-socialist on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 6:16pm.

when libs accused conservatives of "worshipping" Ronald Reagan, and one take was actually that we demanded that libs "worship" him as well.

Now, they're saying that conservatives are trying to steal the corpse.

This is all about the paint job they're trying to give Obumble. How do you associate the formerly most liberal Senator with somebody who was always considered an "arch" conservative, play down his politics.

But so what if Ronald Reagan reached "across the aisle", he didn't take the opposing party into a room and tell them "I won".

I'm sorry folks...

Submitted by The_Barrel_Guy on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 6:18pm.

I have no clue when noonan is telling the truth or simply lying or trying to appear informed... Ever since her "open mike" episode about Sarah Palin, noonin has absolutely no credibility with me...

In fact, I only opened this to make this comment... I did not nor will not read, watch or listen to another word that woman says or writes...

We must fight to win every battle for liberty... The enemy needs only win once!

Agreed. Noonan has lost all

Submitted by Irene Flick on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 8:31pm.

Agreed. Noonan has lost all her credibilty. She only defends dead male conservatives. Her fangs are out for any other type.

Noonan lacks credibilty as a conservative . . .

Submitted by Galvanic on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 12:34pm.

. . . but it doesn't mean she doesn't get things right every now and then.

Noonan is a Beltway "conservative," which to most posters on this site translates as RINO. She's been employed by conservatives to write speeches, and she's advocated the agendas of Republican Presidents, but she's never exhibited the passion of true, grass roots conservatism.

That's why she's so dismissive of Sarah Palin. To the Beltway pros of both parties, people like Palin are upstarts who are unwise to the mystical ways of government best left to Beltway "professionals." Noonan wouldn't know how to write an effective speech for Sarah Palin because despite her middle class youth (she attended my dad's junior high school in Massapequa, LI), she's been living on Mt. Olympus too long to relate to the Tea Parties; she doesn't understand the leading personalities or the audience.

He was authentic, which is I

Submitted by stan25 on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 6:31pm.

He was authentic, which is I think one of the reasons why he's so admired after all of these years.

In the noble words of Col. Sherman Potter "HORSE HOCKEY" The state controlled media hated Reagan just as much as they hated Richard Nixon, Bush Sr, Bush Jr and now Sarah Palin. In fact, the entire leftist establishment hated him. Now they are paying lip service to him, just as they did at the time of his passing, because their current leader has proven to be a dunderhead or worse.

Agreed,

Submitted by HockeyKid on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 10:28am.

and I'll throw in a "BULL BISCUITS!" to boot. Too bad in the age of the Internet we can all easily revisit those Sunday morning shows and 60 minutes segments that opined about how poorly history would treat Reagan.

And now they're trying to cloak The Emperor with New Clothes in the mantel of Reagan. Revoltin'!

"Beauty is only skin deep, but liberal's to the bone." - me

Obama 'hearts' Reagan because...

Submitted by Unsilent_Minority on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 6:30pm.

...in his twisted world, Obama believes himself to be as popular, effective and loved as Reagan is now. Obama believes that, like Reagan, there are those who may not like him but time will show him to be, like Reagan, one of the greatest Presidents ever. Obama really has no idea that he is regarded as a clueless fool and a pretender in the eyes of many Americans as well as world leaders, instead believing that his 'job' is much the same as that of the royal family in Britain...merely window-dressing and public appearances, you know, to encourage and entertain the masses. He has as much ability to effectively lead this country as a show pony would; his job, he believes, is simply to exist.

If you voted for Obama to prove you're not racist, OK. But this time, vote against him to prove you're not an idiot. "I'm the kind of Conservative Republican your Democrat friends warned you about."

Ms. Noonan...

Submitted by PJRyan on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 6:43pm.

...dismissed Mitchell's disingenous, wishful thinking very nicely.

I wish someone would have jumped on the equally phony Willie Brown's claim that Obama has been a stalwart proponent of President Reagan for many years (my words).

Birds

Submitted by grammajane on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 6:43pm.

Clift and Mitchell are birds of a feather. Both claim they are so elite and educated on all subjects of which, either has a clue. Reagan was a great President with class and compassion for this great country which is no comparison to what is happenong in the white house today. Zero, nadda, nothing!!

Birds

Submitted by grammajane on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 6:43pm.

it takes one to know one

Submitted by MidAmerica on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 7:08pm.

Four people who live atypical lives from the overwhelming majority of Americans are discussing the role of Reagan to America. You can't understand Reagan unless you understand and ADMIRE main street Americans as Reagan did.

Reagan grew up in the area I live and he went to school a few blocks from my house for a while. I can attest to the small town values of hard work, self reliance and honesty Reagan would have been exposed to.

Speeches of Ronald Reagan

Submitted by Blonde on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 7:44pm.

Might I post this useful link:

Speeches of Ronald Reagan.

For anyone and everyone.....read the man's own words, then decide for yourself....was he a "progressive"....like Bammy?

From Reagan's first innaugural:

The business of our nation goes forward. These United States are confronted with an economic affliction of great proportions. We suffer from the longest and one of the worst sustained inflations in our national history. It distorts our economic decisions, penalizes thrift, and crushes the struggling young and the fixed-income elderly alike. It threatens to shatter the lives of millions of our people.

Idle industries have cast workers into unemployment, human misery, and personal indignity. Those who do work are denied a fair return for their labor by a tax system which penalizes successful achievement and keeps us from maintaining full productivity.

But great as our tax burden is, it has not kept pace with public spending. For decades we have piled deficit upon deficit, mortgaging our future and our children's future for the temporary convenience of the present. To continue this long trend is to guarantee tremendous social, cultural, political, and economic upheavals.

You and I, as individuals, can, by borrowing, live beyond our means, but for only a limited period of time. Why, then, should we think that collectively, as a nation, we're not bound by that same limitation? We must act today in order to preserve tomorrow. And let there be no misunderstanding: We are going to begin to act, beginning today.

The economic ills we suffer have come upon us over several decades. They will not go away in days, weeks, or months, but they will go away. They will go away because we as Americans have the capacity now, as we've had in the past, to do whatever needs to be done to preserve this last and greatest bastion of freedom.

In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem. From time to time we've been tempted to believe that society has become too complex to be managed by self-rule, that government by an elite group is superior to government for, by, and of the people. Well, if no one among us is capable of governing himself, then who among us has the capacity to govern someone else? All of us together, in and out of government, must bear the burden. The solutions we seek must be equitable, with no one group singled out to pay a higher price.

We hear much of special interest groups. Well, our concern must be for a special interest group that has been too long neglected. It knows no sectional boundaries or ethnic and racial divisions, and it crosses political party lines. It is made up of men and women who raise our food, patrol our streets, man our mines and factories, teach our children, keep our homes, and heal us when we're sick -- professionals, industrialists, shopkeepers, clerks, cabbies, and truckdrivers. They are, in short, ``We the people,'' this breed called Americans.

Well, this administration's objective will be a healthy, vigorous, growing economy that provides equal opportunities for all Americans with no barriers born of bigotry or discrimination. Putting America back to work means putting all Americans back to work. Ending inflation means freeing all Americans from the terror of runaway living costs. All must share in the productive work of this ``new beginning,'' and all must share in the bounty of a revived economy. With the idealism and fair play which are the core of our system and our strength, we can have a strong and prosperous America, at peace with itself and the world.

So, as we begin, let us take inventory. We are a nation that has a government -- not the other way around. And this makes us special among the nations of the Earth. Our government has no power except that granted it by the people. It is time to check and reverse the growth of government, which shows signs of having grown beyond the consent of the governed.

It is my intention to curb the size and influence of the Federal establishment and to demand recognition of the distinction between the powers granted to the Federal Government and those reserved to the States or to the people. All of us need to be reminded that the Federal Government did not create the States; the States created the Federal Government.

Now, so there will be no misunderstanding, it's not my intention to do away with government. It is rather to make it work -- work with us, not over us; to stand by our side, not ride on our back. Government can and must provide opportunity, not smother it; foster productivity, not stifle it.

If we look to the answer as to why for so many years we achieved so much, prospered as no other people on Earth, it was because here in this land we unleashed the energy and individual genius of man to a greater extent than has ever been done before. Freedom and the dignity of the individual have been more available and assured here than in any other place on Earth. The price for this freedom at times has been high, but we have never been unwilling to pay that price.

It is no coincidence that our present troubles parallel and are proportionate to the intervention and intrusion in our lives that result from unnecessary and excessive growth of government. It is time for us to realize that we're too great a nation to limit ourselves to small dreams. We're not, as some would have us believe, doomed to an inevitable decline. I do not believe in a fate that will fall on us no matter what we do. I do believe in a fate that will fall on us if we do nothing. So, with all the creative energy at our command, let us begin an era of national renewal. Let us renew our determination, our courage, and our strength. And let us renew our faith and our hope.

Do tell, Andrea? Is it REAL, or is it MEMOREX?

Handy Reference Guide to Obama's Gaffes and Goofs ~ Currently Numbering 200 (and Counting)

Thanks for the post and link, Blondie!!!

Submitted by Grumpy in Arizona on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 2:19pm.

Edited comment: A few minutes ago I posted a comment here that was better served on another thread... so I have deleted it here.

Nonetheless, the link you posted will be invaluable to me in the future.

Have a great day…and thanks again! :o)

"I wish I had an answer to that because I'm tired of answering that question." - Yogi Berra, (Baseball Great and Philosopher)

Back at you, Grumpy

Submitted by Blonde on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 2:21pm.

That list....I could really go on a rant!!!

So, they ranked Obama, after fifteen months, vis-a-vis a two term Ronald Reagan? That to begin with, is totally bogus.

I think I'll stop there. This whole Obama => Reagan just drives me insane. Great link, though, I'm going to bookmark it along side the Reagan speeches one. I've been posting it for a couple of days, because these liberal twits who are making this equivalency argument cannot possibly get around Reagan's own words....and Obama in comparison isn't even a shadow, he's the anti-Reagan.

Ronald Maximus will never be equalled. I only wish George Bush had been a worthy successor, instead of being dumb enough to be duped by the democrats.

Handy Reference Guide to Obama's Gaffes and Goofs ~ Currently Numbering 200 (and Counting)

Blondie...Sorry!

Submitted by Grumpy in Arizona on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 2:46pm.

I just wasn't quick enough to remove my comments before you replied...

But a Thousand Thanks for your gracious comments! :o)

See the latest thread about the MSM lecturing us on Ronald Regan to read my original comments.

God bless you! :o)

"I wish I had an answer to that because I'm tired of answering that question." - Yogi Berra, (Baseball Great and Philosopher)

Oh, for crying out loud!!

Submitted by motherbelt on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 8:19pm.

How DARE Republicans try to "appropriate" Reagan, as if he was one of them???

We are truly in Bizarro World.

So Reagan's conservatism was just a head-fake? (Don't forget: they know the truth.....)

Stephen Green, the Vodkapundit, put it very well (paraphrasing):

Liberals are so desperate to prop up the empty suit in the White House that they are now strapping it to Ronald Reagan's corpse.

We have Reagan: "Government's not the solution, it's the problem"

Obama: "The Constitution is flawed because it doesn't spell out what the government ought to do for the people."

(both paraphrased)

and Obama is like Reagan????

The fact that somebody has to

Submitted by Thoreau on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 9:06pm.

The fact that somebody has to correct the Lame Stream Media about something so obvious- it's not like the guy was President 100 years ago. I know exactly what Reagan did. He was the complete opposite of Obama or 75% of the population of California. He was like John Voight in that way. An aberration from within a liberal socialist culture. Which makes him even more brave if you ask me.

In any case, I don't understand why these liberals aren't admitted to mental hospitals. They are completely out of touch with history or present day reality.

Obama is a Communist. Obama is foreign born. Obama was born a Muslim. Obama was raised a muslim. Obama was schooled in a Jakarta Madrassa.

Reagan wouldn't let Obama touch his horse much less his Country.

So, to the lame stream media. Blow it out your ass.

Noonan's restraint

Submitted by sherlock1 on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 9:07pm.

Noonan's restraint was amazing - she let Mitchell blather on, and only made her point when the moderator turned to her and (I suspect trying to get Mitchell's point accepted as a fait accompli), started to pose another question.

But Mitchell did not wait long until she started talking over Noonan, and I would love to have heard Noonan say "Don't talk over me when I had the good upbringing to endure your lies, you shameless hypocrite!"

I agree Noonan has class, unlike Mitchell

Submitted by amyshulk on Tue, 02/08/2011 - 8:41am.

Noonan put Mitchell in her place? I disagree. When Mitchell qualified her point to apply ONLY to Palin/Candidates, Noonan used body language to imply she agreed after stating "You mean some people are trying to claim him as their mantle" she threw up her hands and shrugged, as if conceding the point. So Mitchell DID score.

I first saw Noonan on Morning Joe - last year I think. I was clueless as to who she was at first, but Joe made it clear she was his "type" of Republican. I must have caught her in her conservative persona, because I quite liked her. Later spots revealed her to be what Joe claimed all right - she really is his type of R!

This is my major flaw too - I can see both sides and will say so, and it's perceived that I agree with my assessments when I'm really saying I understand, but do NOT condone.

That was my first reaction to Pres. Obama. That he too has this flaw, and while in me it is off-putting to some {people tend to react strongly to me} I figured it would be disastrous in a President.

The government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.
Ronald Reagan

Mitchell Has Revealed Herself...

Submitted by Thunder Lizard on Sun, 02/06/2011 - 9:50pm.

...to be a Decepticon, like most of the mainstream media. I wish someone would do a Lexus-Nexus search of every negative comment Mitchell has made about Reagan in her career and stack them against her 'positive" comments about him. I'd bet you wouldn't find her making a single, positive comment until this pathetic attempt to remake the image of Mr. Obama. I came of political age during Carter's presidency. I was fully tuned in during Reagan and I remember full well the constant barrage of attacks leveled at him by the people and news institutions who are now fawning over him. It is absolutely surreal and is intended to decieve the American public. I can't think of anyone who believes this tripe. Even the people saying it, like Mitchell, HATE REAGAN and his legacy. They are just desparate to get something to stick to make Obama look more presidential. At least the honest liberals are still saying they hate him.

"Aaaangryahhhh Mitchell"...

Submitted by Colt on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 1:08am.

In fairness, that pronounciation sounds so much better when Rush says it.

Thanks to her, and her inbred peers, we are stuck with the "Prince of DORK-ness" for at least another two years.

She still can't face the facts, and as usual,...makes up $hit as she goes along.

What do I, personally , liken this presidency to?

Simple. It's like being on an overseas flight, half-way across the Atlantic ocean, and learning that a bratty, 10-year-old kid has gained entry, and locked himself in the cockpit to "give it a whirl"...

Mitchell's kid. Or, at best,...a nephew.

On a lighter note, this was a decent showing for Peggy. Over the years, and too many times to count, I've chewed my fingernails up to the second knuckle, while watching her TV appearances.

This was a rare, good day in the batters box for Peg.

AKA Testicular Fortitude

Submitted by stratman on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 2:01am.

So that's what Noonan sounds like when an ovary works for 30 seconds.

All kidding aside, Noonan was sticking up for a friend. Good to see one loyalty remains despite her attention seeking affectations.

Reagan was dubble crossed by the DemLibs

Submitted by AMR1960 on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 4:29am.

Yes Reagan made agreements with Tip O'Niel to raise taxes, but these deals were tied to cuts of 2x1 in spending for every 1 in taxes--A promise broken by the Dems. He made a deal for Amnesty it was tied to enforcement which the Dems reneged on also.

Efforts to rewrite history by the Collectivist Socialist Progressive Left continue, they have much to answer for...

_____________________

Long Live...THE REPUBLIC !

It is Obama

Submitted by Scott Trent on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 8:37am.

It is Obama and the left wing media who are trying to appropriate Reagan for political points. Reagan was very much a conservative. Obama is no Reagan...

Scott Trent

We don't have to appropriate

Submitted by tampamom25 on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 10:58am.

We don't have to appropriate him....he's already ours. Stupid people.

“…struck back and struck back hard” ????

Submitted by Grumpy in Arizona on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 11:50am.

As far as strike backs go… “Shock and Awe” it wasn’t!

As I remember during the presidential debates, Ronald Regan said to Jimmy Carter: “Mr. Carter, I paid for this microphone!” effectively shutting-up the second worse President in our history - Now that was a strike back!

The ever paternalistic sounding Noonan can’t bring herself to directly confront the lies without giving the other side some opening to refute her words or to make it seem (as in this case) the other side is well intentioned but just “slightly wrong.”

"I wish I had an answer to that because I'm tired of answering that question." - Yogi Berra, (Baseball Great and Philosopher)

A little mistaken there, Grumpy...

Submitted by C-townGiant on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 12:23pm.

The "I paid for this microphone," moment was in the Republican primary debates in New Hampshire.

The local newspaper, the Nashua Telegraph, wanted to involve only Reagan and Bush. Reagan felt all seven candidates should be heard. The paper disagreed, Bob Dole filed a complaint with the FEC, and the FEC agreed with Dole. In the end, Reagan paid for the debate himself and invited all the candidates to appear.

The quote in question was directed to the moderator (who Reagan, in his exasperation, mis-identified as Mr. Green, not Breen) who said Reagan was out of order and ordered his microphone turned off. That earned Reagan's ire and the comment that followed.

Just to set the record straight...

http://baseballwithasideofpolitics.blogspot.com/

C-townGiant

Submitted by Grumpy in Arizona on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 1:49pm.

Thanks for the correction, but I like my recollection better! :o)

"I wish I had an answer to that because I'm tired of answering that question." - Yogi Berra, (Baseball Great and Philosopher)

Me, too!

Submitted by C-townGiant on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 2:45pm.

But we always have the classics that will NEVER go out of style:

"There you go again..." in the debate with Carter one week before the 1980 election, AND after using the line again in the 1984 debate with Mondale, when Mondale responded back (he was ready for it), he hit Mondale with this gem:

""I want you to know that also I will not make age an issue of this campaign. I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent's youth and inexperience."

All-time greatest political quotes. Simply the best.

http://baseballwithasideofpolitics.blogspot.com/

You got that right!

Submitted by Grumpy in Arizona on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 3:17pm.

Reagan’s genius was that he was able to communicate his strongly principled stands in a way that real people (not the MSM) understood. He didn’t need an image-makeover every time a new problem arose.

Thanks again for putting the memories straight!

"I wish I had an answer to that because I'm tired of answering that question." - Yogi Berra, (Baseball Great and Philosopher)

""I want you to know

Submitted by bassndude on Mon, 02/07/2011 - 3:21pm.

""I want you to know that also I will not make age an issue of this campaign. I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent's youth and inexperience."

Watched that debate. I think that was Carter, not mondale.

Save a SeAL, club a liberal/troll!!