Richard Reeves
Reagan Detour: Conservative Revolutionary

Reagan Detour: Conservative Revolutionary

Ronald Reagan for years made his living as an industry spokesman. He represented the General Electric Company on television and in appearances around the country from 1956 to 1965. Then, in a sense, beginning sometime in the mid-1970s, he became a spokesman for a new industry -- a conservative "ideas industry."

The rise of Reagan and his election to the presidency was a triumph of ideas, not of images as is commonly claimed. Richard Reeves, one of America's liveliest political commentators, follows Reagan across the political landscape, reporting on how this man who is now at the center of it all managed to capture (and bend to his will) the power of old-fashioned American populism.

American belief, optimism and common sense weren't invented by Ronald Reagan, but they served him well, as they have others who would lead their fellow Americans in the pursuit of happiness.

In this regard, Reeves compares Reagan to Franklin D. Roosevelt, even as he argues that Reaganism has failed and that instead of restoring America's faith in themselves and in their big self-government, this conservative president has succeeded in doing the opposite. The Reagan years will be remembered as a detour in the long American road of liberal democratization.

The Republicans polished and manipulated certain ideas for their purposes and recaptured intellectual dominance and political power. Reeves argues that the liberals must now respond with the kind of fresh and vibrant ideas that he lays out in this book. The Reagan Detour combines perceptive on-the-scene reporting with a deeper and broader perspective that will bring readers a fuller realization of what has been happening in American political life.


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Politics As Entertainment

LOS ANGELES —- In 1976, to my regret, I wrote what amounted to an obituary of the Republican Party. Writing about the Democratic Convention in New York that year, I said:


Column Archive

America's Five Political Parties

LOS ANGELES — It would seem that the United States has a five-party system right now. What was done in Iowa last Tuesday could unravel in New Hampshire, but whatever happens next, the United States is more politically fractured than it has been in decades.

Why Americans Aren't Trusted

DALLAS — One of the darker pages of American history was illustrated by film of South Vietnamese, many of whom had worked for the American military or diplomatic corps for years, desperately trying to get into the U.S. Embassy in Saigon and being pushed and batted away by Marines as the last Americans climbed to the roof to escape the advancing North Vietnamese troops by helicopter.

Goodnight, Moon! Goodnight, America!

LOS ANGELES — Scanning the latest national polls, it seems that only 17 percent of Americans — fewer than one in five — say they are satisfied with the way things are going in the United States. Only 11 percent have confidence in the U.S. Congress, and the same percentage believe that old one about the country being headed in the right direction. Two out of three respondents think the economy is going in the wrong direction. This in the land of hope and glory.

The New Newt

WASHINGTON — Mention the name of the man of the hour around here and people all seem to have the same reaction. They shake their heads. Some seem amused, some angry, some frightened. Despite living most of his adult life here, Newt Gingrich does not have many friends among his neighbors.

The Sayings Of Chairman Barney

WASHINGTON — I first met Barney Frank in 1979, when he was a state legislator in Massachusetts. We spoke the same language, Jersey cynical, because we grew up a couple of miles from each other. He was from Bayonne and I was from Jersey City, the jewel of Hudson County.

Whack-a-Newt Is The New Game In Town

WASHINGTON — Like most reporters here in the 1980s, I liked Newt Gingrich and spent time listening to his office lectures every few weeks. He was smart, he was candid about most things, wrong about others — and funny in his hypercharged way. He was young and irreverent — like us — and he was on his way to taking over the Republicans in Congress and then Congress itself. His ambition was boundless, but he was changing the rules in Washington for better or worse.

It Seems Wall Street Is Occupying Us

LOS ANGELES — The good news of the day is that Bill Moyers is coming back to television next January. The bad news is that Coca-Cola seems to be winning its battle to fill the Grand Canyon with empty plastic bottles.

American Decline; Crushing The Middle Class

LOS ANGELES — By chance, the three things that landed in my inbox — that's a polite euphemism for "pile" — on Tuesday were these:

The Worst Generation

DETROIT — Looking at the newspapers this morning, I noticed that Tom Brokaw was making a speech in New York. It made me wonder if he was working on a sequel to his books on "The Greatest Generation." This one might be called "The Worst Generation."

Nice Debates, Guys, But You're In Trouble

LOS ANGELES — I was pleasantly surprised last Wednesday when I asked a roomful of students at the University of Southern California how many had watched the Republican candidates' debate the night before and dozens of hands went up, more than half the students, maybe two-thirds.

Which Side Are You On!

LOS ANGELES — I am all for Occupy Wall Street — and a lot of other places — but I wish I understood where this is going. And why it took so long to get going.

The Republican Circus

LOS ANGELES — Who's left? Is there a good-looking, smart state legislator out there somewhere whom the Republican parties could agree on as their candidate?

Class Warfare: Bring It On!

LOS ANGELES — President Obama came out here last Tuesday to proclaim himself a "warrior for the middle class." Would that it were true.

America The Passive

BERKELEY, Calif. — Democrats should be building statues of former Michigan governor Jennifer Granholm, or at least giving away copies of her new book, "A Governor's Story."

Lost Decade ... Lost Generation?

LOS ANGELES — "Soaring Poverty Casts Spotlight on 'Lost Decade'" was the lead headline in last Wednesday's New York Times.

Does Karl Rove Know Something We Don't?

LOS ANGELES — Karl Rove, pundit for now, continued to pound away at his favorite target, Sarah Palin, over the summer, saying this time she was too "thin-skinned" to be president.

Who Pays For God's Revenge?

LOS ANGELES — The phrase "the general welfare" of the people is part of the U.S. Constitution that so many political folk wave around these days — arguing basically that the problems and assumptions of 1789 remain inviolate in the 21st century.

Deep In The Heart Of Fantasyland

SAG HARBOR, N.Y. — Texas Gov. Rick Perry, a man who would be king, has written a book. It's called "Fed Up! Our Fight to Save America from Washington."