The Democrats weren’t the left in the 1950’s or even the 1960’s.
The Democrats today are nothing like the Democrats of that time, certainly not in a cultural sense and for the most part not even in an economic sense either.
The usual 1950’s-1960’s Democrat would find the current types ideological obsessions bizarre.
Reagan entered politics when Democrats were running the House Un-American Activities Committee. Democrats started many of their now pet leftist institutions like the Peace Corps and Amnesty International mainly as deniable counters to Communist infiltration. John Kennedy cut taxes and raised the defense budget. The mass media environment was much more politically balanced in 1960 than in 1980.
I find your analysis ahistorical.
As for Reagan specifically, the important point concerns his character - his optimism, his pragmatism, his generous spirit. I like to think that today he would be making friends and thereby influencing people, and not pronouncing anathemas and scourging the heretics.
That was rambling, what did you find ahistorical in my post.
By the way, why do you post so much on abortion and Romney in his defense, but refuse to answer anything about yourself and abortion and the homosexual agenda?
Also, dismissing Santorum as you do, I get the impression that Gingrich ranks below Romney to you, is that correct?
I also want you to point out the history that you claim I got wrong in post 185.