Free Republic

With Monday marking the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, Ronald Reagan's son Michael tells Newsmax that his father was deeply troubled by the wall from the night it was first erected. Michael Reagan also said President Barack Obama's decision not to attend the anniversary ceremonies in Berlin is "sad," but "completely consistent" with Obama. On June 12, 1987, President Reagan delivered a rousing speech near the Berlin Wall in which he challenged the leader of the Soviet Union: "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" Less than 2 1/2 years later, on Nov. 9, 1989, the wall...

On June 12, 1987, as the liberal media elite were toasting the leader of the Soviet Union as a great champion of progress, President Ronald Reagan stood at the Berlin Wall and challenged Mikhail Gorbachev to put his money where his mouth was: “General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization, come here to this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” Gorbachev did not open the gate or tear down the Berlin Wall, but two years later the people of...

This past weekend, a small brouhaha erupted over a Halloween display on Capitol Hill. The display, in essence, mocked the death of the Republican Party and the conservative movement... Though distasteful, the display makes a point that has become increasingly common in American political discourse, that the Republican Party and American conservatism are dead... Of course, this is oversimplification and hyperbole. Conservatism is not dead, just civil conservatism. You can still hear some semblance of conservatism in the streets when Tea Partiers march, still see it on the television when you watch Fox News. In ever more hysterical tones, conservatism...

Former Congressman Duncan L. Hunter was kind enough to interrupt his extended Idaho vacation once more to answer a few questions and put his two cents in on the issues of the day. He and Lynne had their daughter-in-law and grandkids join them in Idaho over the Halloween weekend. He also extended his vacation plans for another week or so. After 28 years in the US House, then writing a book, he certainly deserves to enjoy his family, the R&R, and the hunting and fishing opportunities this weeks long vacation has afforded him. Hunter mentioned his son Duncan D. could...

Cold War: The White House has announced our absence at ceremonies marking the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Meanwhile, Russia has been practicing a nuclear invasion of an abandoned Poland. The Berlin Wall has been a famous backdrop for American presidents sounding the battle cry of liberty in the struggle against tyranny. It was there that John F. Kennedy expressed our solidarity with the encircled residents of that outpost of freedom with his famous "Ich bin ein Berliner." And it was there that Ronald Reagan, with a defiant "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall," voiced our...

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama noted Wednesday's 30th anniversary of the takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, while insisting he wants the U.S. and Iran to move beyond "suspicion, mistrust and confrontation."

Return to the Article November 03, 2009Twenty-five years after the Reagan landslideBy Bruce Walker Election Day, 1984 -- twenty five years ago -- many thought that the ideological battle of America was won. President Reagan, the disciple of "Mr. Conservative" Barry Goldwater ran against Walter Mondale, the disciple of "Mr. Liberal" Hubert Humphrey.  Reagan got into politics with "The Speech" endorsing Barry Goldwater.  Here is what Reagan said in 1964:  This is the issue of this election: Whether we believe in our capacity for self-government or whether we abandon the American revolution and confess that a little intellectual elite...

Listened to Bush Sr. Gave lots of credit to others, but there was a stark omission of Reagan. No Credit for Reagan???

Ronald Reagan did say never speak ill of another Republican but he also said trust but verify. In the case of New York's 23rd Congressional District candidate Republican Dierdre Scozzafava the people have spoken.

He was called a dumb actor -- a mere mouthpiece for wealthy controllers on the right, who fed him lines and pointed him toward a lectern to deliver them. He communicated well and knew how to act the part, having trained in those arts. But he was really an empty suit. Today, many rank that man -- Ronald Reagan -- among our greatest presidents. That he was not the derogatory things he had been called was a matter of record. Well before running for the presidency he had wedded himself to the core ideas he espoused in that office --...

In 1909, in the great state of Illinois, school teachers one February day were directed to spend at least half the school day in public exercises, patriotic music, and recitations of sayings, verses, and speeches to mark the centennial birthday of a great hero. At the end of it all, they were to have their students face in the direction of Springfield and chant in unison the following: “A blend of mirth and sadness, smiles and tears; “A quaint knight errant of the pioneers; “A homely hero, born of star and sod; “A Peasant Prince, a masterpiece of God.” Who...

Wow. I just noticed something. Our commander-in-chief is the least alpha of any of the leaders of our former enemies from World War II and the Cold War: Germany, Italy, and Russia. While I knew Obama exhibited beta behavior, I had no idea it was this bad. Give me a minute and I’ll lay out pictorial proof. We all know that Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi holds the title of “Intergalactic Alpha”. The 73 year-old silverback is banging 18 year-olds, has amassed a fortune, laid the smack down on his wife, and avoided indictment and/or lynching for his shenanigans....

Rush Limbaugh, in response to the announcement that RINO, Dede Scozzafava, had withdrawn from the NY-23 race, told Kathryn Jean Lopez of National Review Online:

His warning about the value of freedom and danger of big government is even more relevant today!"A Time for Choosing" otherwise known as "The Speech" was delivered in a broadcast in support of Barry Goldwater's 1964 presidential election. The name of the program, "Rendezvous with Destiny" marked the beginning of Reagan as a national political figure. It turned out to be Reagan's rendezvous with destiny... [VIDEO AT SITE] Full text of the speech Excerpts from "A Time for Choosing" By Ronald Reagan Broadcast October 27, 1964...No nation in history has ever survived a tax burden that reached a third of...

Is Reagan Conservatism dead? The answer is a resounding - No! The ideal is as solid as it has ever been, but the objective view of this writer is that it is not enough to deliver this nation from the 70 year socialistic grip of liberalism and its horrific consequences (moral and institutional) on our society and people. Anyone who has an objective view and appraisal of our current situation would have to agree. In light of the present conditions plaguing our country and what seems to be the disintegration of the Republican Party, Conservatives have been on suicide alert...

Is Reagan Conservatism dead? The answer is a resounding - No! The ideal is as solid as it has ever been, but the objective view of this writer is that it is not enough to deliver this nation from the 70 year socialistic grip of liberalism and its horrific consequences (moral and institutional) on our society and people. Anyone who has an objective view and appraisal of our current situation would have to agree. In light of the present conditions plaguing our country and what seems to be the disintegration of the Republican Party, Conservatives have been on suicide alert...

Forty Five years ago today (thanks for the reminder, Rush), Ronald Reagan gave the speech that changed everything. Reagan's speech, sometimes called "A Time for Choosing," or "A Rendezvous With Destiny," given during Barry Goldwater's campaign at the Republican National Convention in 1964, was part inspirational, part prophetic (see below), timeless in wisdom, and a stern warning about the government's infringement upon our freedoms.

A Time for Choosing by Ronald Reagan October 27, 1964 =================================== To a significant degree, Ronald Reagan's election to the presidency stems from this speech, given on national television on behalf of, and sponsored by, Barry Goldwater's 1964 presidential campaign. The speech remains amazingly fresh as a statement of modern American conservative philosophy four decades after it was delivered. =================================== Thank you very much. Thank you and good evening. The sponsor has been identified, but unlike most television programs, the performer hasn't been provided with a script. As a matter of fact, I have been permitted to choose my own...

Great stuff for people who love politics, history, and conservatism. I never saw that footage of an angry Reagan at the beginning before.

great video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orTEyYR87iI&videos=MrfG0cTrKFo

Big tent or 'blurring the lines'? Reagan words drive GOP debateBy Reid Wilson - 10/24/09 02:22 PM ET Ronald Reagan’s approach toward Democrats and centrists has become the latest flashpoint in a debate over the Republican Party’s future. Potential GOP presidential contenders are disputing the 40th president’s interpretation of courting those outside the party at a time when Republicans are sharply divided over New York special election primary for the 23rd District House seat. One group claims the best strategy is to broaden the base with varying viewpoints that might appeal to new voters, while the other warns against letting...

Twenty years later, historians still can't figure out why the West won.The Year That Changed the World: The Untold Story Behind the Fall of the Berlin Wall, by Michael Meyer, New York: Scribner, 272 pages, $26The Rebellion of Ronald Reagan: A History of the End of the Cold War, by James Mann, New York: Viking, 416 pages, $27.95 We don’t know the exact hierarchy of motives, but it is certain that Chris Gueffroy was willing to leave his family and friends to avoid conscription into the army. Considering the associated risks, it’s likely that the 20-year-old was also strongly motivated...

Craig Shirley, a prominent conservative consultant and close ally of Ronald Reagan, has just written a superb insider's account of Reagan's return from the political wilderness in 1980. Entitled "Rendezvous with Destiny," it is full of anecdotes that have never been published before. Here is Shirley's account of the pivotal moment in the bitter GOP presidential primary battle between Reagan and former Texas congressman and CIA director George H.W. Bush. To order the book, click here. Rendezvous with Destiny.bmp The thirty-five days between the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary during the 1980 presidential campaign were the most important...

EDITOR’S NOTE: In his new book, Rendezvous with Destiny: Ronald Reagan and the Campaign That Changed America (ISI Books), Craig Shirley provides the first inside look at the historic 1980 election, a race that even as late as election day was judged “too close to call.” In this excerpt, Shirley shows how close Reagan’s campaign came to collapsing in the Republican primaries — and how the candidate turned things around.The thirty-five days between the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary during the 1980 presidential campaign were the most important time in Ronald Reagan’s political life. And the pivotal moment...

Yes Ronald Reagan, a former New Deal Democrat, by his own admission was converted to Conservatism by Whittaker Chambers an admitted former Communist (capital C), and former Soviet spy, and his book Witness. Whittaker Chambers was a complex man, early in life, he became caught up in the idealism of Soviet Communism and its purported benevolence toward the common man. Whitaker Chambers was born Jay Vivian Chambers April 1, 1901. He was raised in a household with a mentally ill maternal grandmother that caused dissension and apparently drove his father to leave his family. His father supported the family with...

Pre Order Going Rogue HEREPeter Heck, a public high school teacher, penned an articulate case of the mainstream media's obsessive Palin bashing. Quite frankly, the writing is on the wall and it what it says scares the MSM. Since the moment she burst onto the national scene, there has been an unparalleled effort amongst the so-called sophisticated elites to destroy Sarah Palin. Unparalleled, but not unprecedented. In the 1970s, the dominant left feared the rise of another radical right-wing governor of a western state -- you might remember his name: Ronald Reagan -- and they utilized a full arsenal...

In an age where style trumps substance in so many ways, few can be surprised that a fledging President would receive a Nobel Peace Prize. It bears repeating that Obama was President for just a matter of days before the nomination process was closed. Nevertheless, and without any substantive accomplishment, Obama was awarded the Prize – unanimously – apparently for things to come. No wonder 58% of Americans believe that politics was behind the choice.

CNN commentator Jack Cafferty summarized the conclusion of the mainstream media by stating that former Governor Sarah Palin, "won't have the same impact if she doesn't carry the mantle of governor of Alaska....she becomes...a thumbsucker." In a related story, on September 30, 2009, Sarah Palin's memoir Going Rogue shattered records by hitting number one at Amazon and Barnes & Noble...48 days before the book even hits shelves. Not bad for a thumbsucker. To put it in perspective, at the time Sarah's book catapulted to the top of the bestseller list, it didn't even have a cover and hadn't even been...

In an age where style trumps substance in so many ways, few can be surprised that a fledging President would receive a Nobel Peace Prize. It bears repeating that Obama was President for just a matter of days before the nomination process was closed. Nevertheless, and without any substantive accomplishment, Obama was awarded the Prize – unanimously – apparently for things to come. No wonder 58% of Americans believe that politics was behind the choice.

Making Progress? Writing on the occasion of Ronald Reagan’s death, the NY Times columnist David Brooks articulated the roots of Reagan’s success in as accurate and succinct a way as I’ve seen. Reagan “revolutionized” American conservatism insofar as he transformed it from what had been a disposition to defend tradition and custom – and thus one with an orientation toward the past – to a movement motivated by a deeply optimistic belief in progress – and thus, marked by an upbeat view about the future and America’s providential role in advancing progress. As Brooks wrote, To understand the intellectual content...

The Original Comeback Kid by: Malcolm A. Kline, October 08, 2009 American presidents of both parties, all too often, need to be appreciated at a distance. Of the 20th Century chief executives, perhaps only Ronald Reagan holds up well under scrutiny. Truly, the more you know about him, the more there is to like. Even a few academics are starting to appreciate him. “Political scientist Andrew Busch conducted a content analysis of major presidential speeches from Lyndon Johnson through Reagan and found that Reagan cited the Founders three to four times as often as his four predecessors,” Steven F. Hayward...

President Obama's "safe schools" czar Kevin Jennings addressed his former organization the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network in Iowa in 2000. In this audio clip, he talks about Ronald Reagan's 1980 presidential win and references it back to a Karl Marx quote.

Unemployment is currently at a 26-year-high of 9.7 percent and expected to continue rising. The last president to govern with such high unemployment was President Ronald Reagan. But in 1982, when unemployment was rising similarly to the way it has in 2009 the network news media were merciless quoting attacks from Democrats, union leaders and the unemployed to attack Reagan's "sadistic" fiscal policies. 2009 was a different story, for a different president. Even though unemployment has shot up from 8.1 percent since February, network reporters looked for "hopeful signs" of an economic turnaround in their jobs report. The Business &...

Arthur Laffer, the primary architect of Reagan’s debt bomb that we are currently trying to defuse, has now executed a complete 180° turn from his monetary policies that gutted the Midwest industrial base in the 1980s. In a WSJ article on September 22, 2009, he claims the problems of the Great Depression are not caused primarily by tight monetary policy but rather tariffs and taxes. While he gets the facts he mentions right, he ignores the timing of taxes and deficits, tariffs and balance of trade. He’s right that talk of tariffs may have been the trigger that started the...

Campaign Report; Gallup Poll Shows Carter Leads Reagan, 49% to 41%. I guess it is meaningless that Obama leads Palin by smiliar margins , nearly 3 years from the next election. Obama is far , far down the Carter road of defeat. Too far to turn back now.

Give this the full two minutes and compare the resolve, love of country, and clarity of purpose of Reagan with the linguine-spined, moral-equivalence, global-citizenship B.S. of Barack Obama.

COMMON SENSE CONSERVATISM Written by Sarah Palin Thursday, 24 September 2009 [Text of speech delivered at the CLSA Pacific Markets Conference in Hong Kong on September 23, 2009] You can call me a common-sense conservative. My approach to the issues facing my country and the world, issues that we'll discuss today, are rooted in this common-sense conservatism... Common sense conservatism deals with the reality of the world as it is. Complicated and beautiful, tragic and hopeful, we believe in the rights and the responsibilities and the inherent dignity of the individual. We don't believe that human nature is perfectible; we're...

Here is video of President Obama telling David Letterman last night that "we have had too little Government." He was defending his moves to impose Government Health Care on the nation, as well as all the bailouts that have taken place. Obama claims more Government regulation would have kept America from experiencing the economic crisis we are in. That completely skips over the reality that it was Government meddling in the Housing market by pushing lenders to give loans to people who were not able to afford a home. It was the Democrats who pushed lenders to do so, and...

President Obama blinked first and the Russians took advantage. Not that he really tried anyway...He has no stomach for confrontation. Our allies, Poland and The Czech Republic won't be receiving the missile shields promised under the previous administration. Iran will be pursuing it's nuclear ambitions, Russia is free to do pretty much whatever it wants and Israel is just pissed and who could blame them. And to top it all off, Joe Biden makes the statement, "there is no threat there", referring to Iran. It's obvious foreign policy is not one of Obama's strong points, so we're going to dig...

Security: An Iranian mullah once said "a world without America and Zionism" was a real possibility. Our sellout of Eastern Europe and missile defense brings that dream closer to reality. It would take only one warhead."Is it possible for us to witness a world without America and Zionism?" Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad asked at a "World Without Zionism" conference in Tehran in 2005. "But you had best know that this slogan and this goal are attainable, and surely can be achieved." He added that Iran had a strategic "war preparation plan" for what it called "the destruction of Anglo-Saxon civilization." A...

CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer did not look so happy as he competed with actress Dana Delany and comedian Andy Richter in a round of “Celebrity Jeopardy.� The photo shows the scores at the end of the first two rounds. For “Final Jeopardy,� Alex Trebek was nice and wiped out that nasty negative number, credited him with $1,000 and Wolf nailed that final answer with the correct question.

National Security: The proposed missile defense system for Europe may be used as a bargaining chip in negotiations with Russia. Is Ronald Reagan's "We win, they lose" now "Let's make a deal"?When President Reagan began the Strategic Defense Initiative in 1983, the only ones who took it seriously were the Soviets. Their global ambitions depended on an America inhibited and even intimidated by the threat of nuclear war. They still do. Just ask Georgia. When Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev met Reagan in Reykjavik, Iceland, in October 1986, he hoped Reagan would be willing to trade SDI away in exchange for...

Some might say Reagan wasn't very presidential in handling the guy at this campaign event in 1980, but then again he wasn't the president . . . until the next day.

On March 28, 1985, President Ronald Reagan made his first of two visits to the NYSE to salute the robust American expansion, as well as the central role of the New York Stock Exchange as the nerve center of entrepreneurial capitalism. President Reagan was the first sitting U.S. president to visit the NYSE. At 9:53 a.m. that morning, President Reagan—amid a roaring ovation—addressed the Exchange community from the bell podium. Flanked by his chief of staff, Donald T. Regan and NYSE chairman and CEO John J. Phelan, Jr., President Reagan proclaimed: “We’re bullish on the American Economy. The American Economy...

Police say that DNA material found at hotel after killing matches that of Cesar Gomez,34. A man arrested and charged with murdering a prostitute at a Garden Grove hotel is a gang member who has been deported to Mexico three times in the last decade, Garden Grove police said at a press conference this morning. Cesar Gomez, 34,of El Monte,is scheduled to be arraigned on a murder charge Monday at West Justice Center. He is accused of strangling Ashley Lilly, 24, of Inglewood, to death at the Crowne Plaza Anaheim Resort on Harbor Boulevard some time late Aug. 20 or...

The Next Reagan? Maybe By Peter Hannaford on 9.14.09 @ 6:08AM She's tall, blonde and looks you straight in the eye on meeting. You tell her about a local shipping port issue. She asks for more details and clearly understands the economic significance of the issue in the greater scheme of things. A few minutes later she's at the podium telling her personal story in an engaging way, then shifting to the very large problems facing the state. In clear, crisp fashion she tells her audience what she wants to do about them. She is Meg Whitman and she is...

Million Dollar Baby (1941) A young innocent's surprise inheritance causes problems with her poor but proud boyfriend. Cast: Priscilla Lane, Jeffrey Lynn, Ronald Reagan, May Robson Dir: Curtis Bernhardt BW-101 mins, TV-G www.tcm.com

RUSH: Rasmussen has released a poll. It's interesting. If we are to believe this, there can be no conclusion other than we are a conservative country. "'Progressive' is becoming more of a dirty word, but all political labels -- except 'being like Ronald Reagan' -- are falling into disfavor with many US voters, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. 'Liberal' is still the worst and remains the only political description that is viewed more negatively than positively. Being like Reagan is still the most positive thing you can say about a candidate. Just 15% of voters say...

Click on excerpt link to see chart!!!

If there was an underlying theme to Barack Obama’s healthcare speech on Wednesday night, it was his ambition to become a historic president. Doubtless most presidents imagine their likeness on Mount Rushmore. Few are revealing it as clearly as Mr Obama. The immediate goal of Mr Obama’s speech was to put healthcare reform back on track after weeks of mangling by the carnivorous wing of America’s conservative movement. Mr Obama made sharp work in calling out their “bogus claims” – such as the so-called “death panels”. The next few weeks will show whether his speech to Congress helped draw some...