Ronald Reagan: An Essay on the Legacy of an American Icon.
Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute
The sole nonprofit organization created by President Ronald Reagan charged with advancing his legacy and principles.
By: The Honorable James A. Baker, III
Chief of Staff to the President of the United States and Secretary of Treasury in the Reagan Administration
Twenty years after his death, Ronald Reagan remains a shining example of what it means to be a great American. In body, mind, and spirit, the Gipper represented the absolute best in a country he so dearly loved.
A warm and caring smile belied his generous nature and the optimistic belief that each of us can make the best of ourselves, if only we dare to dream of a better future.?
His dynamic blue eyes twinkled when he saw the good in a tough situation or a cantankerous adversary. But they could also turn steely, as they did when he stared down striking air traffic controllers.
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His ramrod erect stature belied a man who stood tall in the face of adversity, as when he rose at the Brandenburg Gate to encourage his Cold War adversary: “General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe . . . open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.”
No president was ever better at building our national confidence.
Even as he battled the darker forces in the world, he remained touched by what Abraham Lincoln once described as “the better angels of our nature.” To his ear, the mystic chords of memory were the unifying verses that Americans have sung for freedom and prosperity since the founding of our great land.
As he told us with a heart filled with joy: “Life is one grand, sweet song, so start the music.”
As time goes by, as our national discourse grows courser and more crude, as increasingly harsh winds blow across the globe and it seems that our leaders either will not -- or cannot -- do the people’s work at home, I miss him more than ever. –James A. Baker, III
owner at yeoman capital
8 个月Thank you, Secretary Baker. Good governance was a core value of both President Reagan and his Vice President, successor President Bush. We need a restoration to values of public service. No leader in your administrations would tolerate the projected Republican Presidential nominee's character. Would they?
Consulting for 50 years in landscape.
8 个月A man that loved his country.
President at Batchelor Campaign Services, Inc.
9 个月Thank you Secretary Baker for the excellent essay and for your great service to America also. I completely agree with you. I miss the rational days where people could disagree with each other without being disagreeable.
Banking . Commercial Lending . Real Estate Construction Loan Administration
9 个月Thank you Secretary Baker for writing this excellent essay on the legacy of an American icon whom we all loved; that you served with utmost self-discipline, distinction, intelligence and ability, including the 6 P’s: Prior Preparation Prevents _Palpable_ Poor Performance! President Ronald Wilson Reagan was a great man, of great Christian faith, with a remarkably clear, courageous voice for the good, and against evil. We do miss him profoundly. Question Secretary Baker: How would President Reagan take on the current Frankfurt School Cultural Marxists, who are attacking us—our Christian faith, families, great American history and nation—internally with their toxic Woke-Mind-Virus Deconstruction & Critical Theory? Your pronounced and crystal clear voice is needed at such an hour as this. BTW, I used to answer calls coming from your office, sitting at Lee Atwater’s desk late in the evening at Reagan-Bush ‘84. A fellow Houstonian. Best wishes to you and the rest of your family, Secretary Baker. It was a life-honor to serve under your leadership, and that of President Reagan and Vice President George Herbert Walker Bush. Take care, sir! ????????
MPA, CISA, CIA, CFE, LSSBB, CCMP, CRMA, CGAP, WMAC
9 个月Wonderful perspective.