Reagan & O’Neill

There is no doubt that for a large part of the American people, myself included, Ronald Reagan was a good President and a great leader. Many remarkable things came out of his administration, like the Amnesty Law that gave legal status to almost 3 million of immigrants working on the fields, or his strategic contribution with Mikhail Gorbachev, President of the former Soviet Union tearing down the Berlin Wall. However, many people don’t know about another singular characteristic of his two terms in the White House. His great and loyal friendship with the liberal democrat speaker of the House at that moment, Tip O’Neill.

Starting in a very rough way, after some of Tip’s diminishing comments about Reagan’s political skills, both of them little by little smoothed some rough edges trying to know each other better. Then, they became allies in a few political strategies and finally they ended as very good friends.

They offered us a great example of how political differences can’t be an obstacle when you ?honestly love your country. As the writer Rich Gorecki described: Prayer and support in tough decisions. It relies on each other’s strengths to fill in gaps and speak the truth whenever there’s a shortcoming.?

Believe it or not, this happened in the 80’s. Though checking our political toxic environment right now, it feels it like was a hundred years ago.