Had he not appealed to Democrats, (Reagan Democrats), he would not have been elected. It was crossover voting that elected Reagan, and also helped propel him to two terms.
Rhetoric aside, Reagan had a lot of moderate support as he was a moderate. He was closer to Rudy then he was Fred. Actually, though, he was more of a libertarian than Mayor Giuliani, and he was much more strongly in favor of personal rights than many FReepers would like.
On immigration, he made a mistake, but I doubt he'd have done it again. These candidates have seen the effects of Reagan's action and we must judge on whether they want to repeat the mistakes.
I think that is largely due to the fact that Rudy is a lawyer and prosecutor. Reagan was not and saw individual rights differently.
I'll cede you that point. It is true.