Republicans today often ask, “What would Reagan do?” The short answer: probably not what they think. Hero of modern-day conservatives, Ronald Reagan was not even conservative enough for some of his most ardent supporters in his own time—and today his practical, often bipartisan approach to politics and policy would likely be deemed apostasy. To try to get a clearer picture of what the real Reagan legacy is, in this book Marcus M. Witcher details conservatives’ frequently tense relationship with Ronald Reagan in the 1980s and explores how they created the latter-day Reagan myth. Witcher reminds us that during Reagan’s time in office, conservative critics complained that he had failed to bring about the promised Reagan Revolution—and in 1988 many Republican hopefuls ran well to the right of his policies. Notable among the dissonant acts of his administration: Reagan raised taxes when necessary, passed comprehensive immigration reform, signed a bill that saved Social Security, and worked with adversaries at home and abroad to govern effectively. Even his signature accomplishment—invoked by “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”—was highly unpopular with the Conservative Caucus, as evidenced in their newspaper ads comparing the president to Neville Chamberlain: “Appeasement is as Unwise in 1988 as in 1938.” Reagan’s presidential library and museum positioned him above partisan politics, emphasizing his administration’s role in bringing about economic recovery and negotiating an end to the Cold War. How this legacy, as Reagan himself envisioned it, became the more grandiose version fashioned by Republicans after the 1980s tells us much about the late twentieth-century transformation of the GOP—and, as Witcher’s work so deftly shows, the conservative movement as we know it now.

Getting Right with Reagan: The Struggle for True Conservatism, 1980-2016

Biographies & Memoirs

Witcher, Marcus M.

Leaders & Notable People

University Press of Kansas

Controversies Among Conservatives: Conversations on Conservatism, Vol. II

History

Hughes, Kevin L.

Mendenhall, Allen

Americas

American Institute for Economic Research

If we face America’s racial history squarely, will it mean that the American project is a failure? Conversely, if we think the American project is a worthy endeavor, do we have to lie, downplay, or equivocate about our past?\nIn this book, we use the classical liberal lens to ask Americans on the political right to seriously reckon with America’s deep racial pain—much of which arises from violations of rights that conservatives say they deeply value, such as property rights, freedom of contract, and the protection of the rule of law. We ask those on the left to take a hard look at the failed paternalism, and in some cases, thoroughgoing racism of past progressive policy. All Americans are asked to apply their concern for individual rights and constitutional order fairly to our historical record. What readers will find are deep injustices against black Americans. But they will also find black entrepreneurs overcoming amazing obstacles and a black community that has created flourishing institutions and culture.\nExhausted by extremism on both left and right, a majority of Americans—black and white—love this country and want to do right by all of its citizens. In Black Liberation Through the Marketplace, readers will come away with a better understanding of black history and creative ideas for how to make this nation truly one with liberty and justice for all.

Black Liberation Through the Marketplace: Hope, Heartbreak, and the Promise of America

Business & Money

Ferguson, Rachel S.

Economics

Emancipation Books

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Witcher, Marcus M.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Witcher, Marcus M.