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Reagan was a very unique president. He hid his brilliance, and his opponents consistently underestimated him. When his personal writings were released, the level of his intelligence and understanding of human nature became more evident.

Many academics cannot accept that Reagan planned his successes, rather than falling into them. Thus, the high rating on "luck."

Reagan also trusted his own instincts. He listened to advisors, but made his own decisions. In his first debate with Mondale, he did acquiesce to his advisors, who insisted he memorize tons of minutia to counteract Mondale's intellect and grasp of the issues. It was his worst debate ever, and led to rampant speculation in the press that he was too old for the job. After that, the handlers came in and tried to double down and Reagan told them, "No. I'm doing the next debate my way." In that debate, he killed Mondale. My two favorite lines from that debate (paraphrased).

In response to the question about his age: "I will not exploit for political purposes the youth and inexperience of my opponent."

When Mondale claimed he was strong on supporting the military, Reagan said, "Yes, I saw your ad showing you on the deck of the aircraft carrier. It's a good thing you didn't get your way or you'd have been in deep water out there. You voted against that carrier four times."

A couple of Reagan's advisors found out later that while they thought they were driving policy decisions, frequently Reagan had already made his decision. Through the use of a few questions, he would guide the advisors to the conclusion he'd already reached.

One of my favorite Reagan quotes: "It's amazing how much you can accomplish if you don't care who gets credit."

Another, which has been stolen multiple times: "A recession is when your neighbor loses his job. A depression is when you lose your job. A recovery is when Jimmy Carter loses his job."

The Republican insiders disliked Reagan, and have spent most of their time since he left the public stage dismantling his accomplishments. In 1980, they tried to force Ford on him as VP and to have Reagan accept him as a "co-president." Reagan finally accepted Bush, but knew Bush did not share his ideals. Reagan remained neutral in the 1988 elections.