An application of the third parable: Reagan did not get into politics through central casting. It began when he ran the Screen Actors Guild. He was elected six times to that position. He had also campaigned for many candidates, Democrats at first, including Harry Truman. During the '50s, he began to campaign as a Democratic supporter of Republican candidates, such as Eisenhower, and became a Republican in '62. He also was the chairman of the Motion Picture Industry Council for a couple of years, working for the interests of the industry as a whole. When he worked for GE, he went around giving speeches and meeting with people. Then, in '64, he gave a nominating speech for Barry Goldwater at the Republican National Convention that many found galvanizing.
He ran for governor of California in '66, and was re- elected for a second term in '70. He limited the growth of state government, reformed welfare, and ran up surpluses, much of which were rebated to taxpayers. After leaving the governorship, he campaigned for president, and spent the interim periods on planning and briefing.
In short, Ronald Reagan was, in fact, a career politician with substantial experience and distinguished credentials by the time he became president of the United States, and the fact that he was not an intellectual is neither here nor there..... |
