Author Dr. Paul Kengor is professor of political science at Grove City College. "An expert on Ronald Reagan" (his own words, not mine) Even thought he claimed he's not "tooting his own horn", but a political science professor could not help himself about all his books and "upcoming" book.
And his conclusion is as wrong today as when he wrote it in May 2016.
Trumpists, you got your man, who a majority of Republican voters in a divided 17-person primary, voted against. You got what you wanted. But do not compare him to Ronald Reagan.
I believe Kengor is a brilliant conservative. He has studied and written many books on Reagan. I think it is quite fair to consider him a Reagan expert. Perhaps the issue here was that he didn’t really know Donald Trump.
Assuming Trump is re-elected I believe history “will” see him as sort of a 2020’s version of Reagan. The public discord is completely different now that in the 80’s, Trump simply reflects that change.
He couldn’t have been more wrong.
Has he ever acknowledged his error?
Why does he have to be like Reagan? Trump and Reagan are completely different personalities and they would disagree on more than a couple areas of policy as well. This reminds me of the posts on here back in 2016 about Trump actually being a good Christian man, etc. No, he’s not. He is who he is, but he’s the guy we need right now, and that’s good enough for me.
Alright, I believe I need to re-think some of my previous statement. I found this in the article:
“Think about it. Consider the leading Republicans that Trump has lit up: Scott Walker, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Ben Carson, Paul Ryan, Jeb Bush, George Bush, John McCain, Mitt Romney, Ben Sasse, Carly Fiorina, and on and on. They are “liars,” “losers,” “morons,” “chokers,” and (for the women) “ugly.” Donald Trump has spent the last six months torching the best and brightest of the future of the conservative movement and Republican Party that dared to stand in his way. He is only happy when he is winning. Anytime that Trump lost a state in the primary to Ted Cruz, all hell was guaranteed to break loose the next morning.”
When Kengor considers all the politicians listed above as “the best and brightest of the futures of the conservative movement and the Republican Party” we have a major disagreement.
Paul Kengor knows a great deal about President Reagan. I’ll grant him the “expert” title. His grasp of the current political landscape is a little less comprehensive. His grasp on why Trump is appealing to Middle America is non-existent.
This is no longer really about marginal tax rates and defending the West against the Soviet military. The existential threat to the United States and the West is 3rd World immigration. Trump campaigned on those notes in 2016. The people flocked to it. It was the $1000 bill laying on the political sidewalk that nobody else would pick up. Reagan naively agreed to amnesty for millions of illegals. Very different times.
Where they are similar is in their ability to connect with the people in flyover country. Different styles, different generations, different issues, different times. Another similarity is in their knowledge that America is sliding and is capable of much more. The threat now is not an external military foe that can stand toe to toe with us, it’s a hollowing out of our culture. Reagan faced that in his time, as well, but the idea of Drag Queen Story Hour would have been thought absurd in 1984. The idea of California turning permanently blue would have been absurd in 1984.
Mr. Kengor, it’s not 1984 anymore.
He isnt another Reagan. He is something very unique...once in a lifetime non politician that has upset... Upended... the entire world ..
And he isnt done yet. I just hope his health stays with him for another 4 years. If he starts showing signs of alzheimers he wont be protected like Reagan
I like him better than Reagan. Trump’s tweets are not a bug, they are a feature!
Reagan's world is gone. The Cold War is over. Opening borders didn't turn out to be as good a thing as people thought. Government turned out to have uses after all.
Politicians have to live in the real world and their real world policies don't always coincide with what they say in their speeches. Reagan might have promised not to raise taxes, but he and his successors had to figure out ways to deal with budget shortfalls.
GHW Bush was different from Reagan, but they weren't opposites. There was more continuity between their approaches than people want to admit. So it is with Trump. He's not the same as Reagan, but he's not the opposite either.
I think the largest difference is in opponents they faced. Trumps opponents are more vocal, more extreme, and more evil. They really hate the past of the United States and everything it stands for. They literally are revering what is good and evil.
Well, Mr. Kengor, I am going to go out on a limb and guess that you have never met President Trump personally.
You have probably never researched President Trump in a favorable way for a book as you may have done for Reagan.
In short, I am going to reverse your statement:
"...My point in presenting this isn’t to toot my own horn. ...The point is that this is what I study (Donald Trump). I have some credibility on the matter of Donald Trump. If someone wants to try to compare President Reagan to President Trump, my opinion ought to have at least some degree of informed merit..."
But since you likely only know about President Trump from what CNN gives you, then your opinion is no better than mine, and likely less valid than my own simply because I don't carry around a inbred set of preconceived notions comparing one to the other.
You stinking turd.
Crappy article, there really isn’t any balance. He deifies Reagan, rightfully so but comes off as a never Trumper. Trump can do no good in his eyes and everything that Trummp has done that is good has a horrible motive behind it.
True the two men are as different is temperament and background as can be but that doesn’t mean Trump is the political polar opposite of Reagan.
The author is clearly a never Trumper using his creds as a “conservative” to knock Trump.
Caveat: My Mama taught me that “fair is a place where you ride the merry~go~round”. Fair is an illusion.
Comparisons like these are innately unfair and usually hide an agenda. This agenda is not so hidden - professor Kengor’s opinion of President Trump is minimal, especially when compared to Ronald Reagan and he wants to make sure you know it. Bully for him.
Any attempt to correct his misstatements is likely greeted with “Aha, so you hate RR!”. No, but I do hate shoddy workmanship. And what we have here is shoddy workmanship.
RR was the great compromiser. He had a knack for persuasion that is hard to equal. That said, he would be eaten alive in today’s political climate. The dhimmicrats, to a man, are evil and would roll right over him.
Trump is “The art of the deal” or the grand negotiator. He instinctively understands what is necessary when dealing with dishonorable people.
They are two different people, with two distinctly different personalities. Both great - each in their own way. Let it go at that.
They shared a love for America and a belief of American Exceptionalism. That’s enough for me.
As regards the military, Reagan reversed social engineering right out of the gate. He implemented the "we ask, don't join" policy and reversed many policies designed to put the gals into combat. Coed basic training in the Army was ended as an example. All talk of dropping standards was ended. Trump might have had problems with this if for no other reason than the fact most young men now are not man enough to serve in uniform. They're perfectly happy leaving it to the gals (who serve because of lower height, weight and physical fitness standards). These are the boys we all know from the GOP 'leaders'...Trump, Romney, Sununu, Burr, Kasich, Rubio, Ryan, Cruz, etc. Families who in many cases have not put a man in uniform since they got off the boat.
So four years after this is written we know that Trump is not exactly in the mode of Reagan, but is probably far more comparable in terms of goals if not style than most GOP leaders of the past fifty years. That's not too bad.
Trump is not the next Reagan. He has surpassed Reagan. Trump in now closing in on Teddy Roosevelt.
Trump is destined for his spot on Mt. Rushmore!
Just for kicks, would love to read what Dr. Paul Kengor thinks now. Many of his years ago suppositions have proven wildly off target. Would he correct the record now?