| Sean Hannity is always espousing this mythical | | | | Mr Reagan increased funding for the National |
| creature called a Reagan conservative. Has Mr. | | | | Endowment for the Arts each year of his presidency. |
| Hannity and the rest of the Republicans who place | | | | He dramatically increased the War on Drugs costing |
| this president on a pedestal ever objectively | | | | the taxpayer billions of dollars and violating the rights |
| examined his record. Did government increase or | | | | of many US citizens. |
| decrease from 1981 to 1988? Mr. Reagan's words | | | | He pledged to eliminate the Departments of |
| certainly sounded conservative but my question is, | | | | Education and Energy while campaigning, but after |
| how conservative was Ronald Reagan in his actions? | | | | election it the budgets of these cabinets doubled. |
| During Reagan's 8 years in office the federal | | | | Reagan even promoted the creation of a new |
| government spent a total of about 22% of GDP. | | | | federal Department of Veterans' Affairs to join the |
| (That's the biggest-spending eight years since World | | | | Departments of Education and Energy, which his |
| War II.) Spending grew from $678 billion to $1.14 | | | | administration was supposed to eliminate. |
| trillion. Pretty impressive conservative record. Let's go | | | | He damaged the free market by increasing trade |
| on. Mr. Reagan, like his successors Bush, Clinton, Bush | | | | barriers. The portion of imports under restriction has |
| 2 and now Obama have absolutely no problem with | | | | doubled since 1980. Quotas and so-called voluntary |
| large deficit spending. | | | | restraints have been imposed on a host of products, |
| If government cuts taxes, but not spending, it still | | | | from computer chips to automobiles. He also |
| gets the money from somewhere-either by | | | | promoted increasing spending on farm subsidies. |
| borrowing or inflating. Either method robs the | | | | Sound more and more conservative, huh? |
| productive private sector. | | | | He increased the federal workforce by 230,000. |
| During his tenure there was unprecedented | | | | This is just a small sampling of Ronald Reagan's |
| government debt. Reagan had tripled the Gross | | | | not-so-conservative record. It's just a myth, and |
| Federal Debt, from $900 billion to $2.7 trillion. Ford and | | | | people like Hannity have elevated a general big |
| Carter in their combined terms could only double it. It | | | | government Republican into the God of the |
| took 31 years to accomplish the first postwar debt | | | | conservative movement. |
| tripling, yet Reagan did it in eight. | | | | Yes I know, these numbers appear microscopic after |
| Foreign aid has also risen, from $10 billion to $22 billion. | | | | 8 years of Bush and now Obama, but at the time |
| Every year, Reagan asked for more foreign-aid | | | | these numbers were huge. Especially for the leader |
| money than the Congress was willing to spend. He | | | | of the conservative movement. |
| also pushed through Congress an $8.4 billion increase | | | | Please guys, lets be honest about the reality of the |
| in the U.S. "contribution" to the International Monetary | | | | man. |
| Fund. | | | | |