Ronald Reagan's America

Supporters of the Reagan presidency claim that the Reagan Revolution defeated inflation, reduced the role of government, rehabilitated the authority of the states and local government, and established a sensible balance between industrial progress and environmental protection. Opponents assert that these policies increased the national debt by more than $1 trillion, gutted social programs, and created a trickle-down economy that increased unemployment, insecurity, homelessness, and the percentage of Americans living at or below the poverty level. Both positions are argued by such participants as Edwin Meese III, James G. Watt, and Lyn Nofzinger, and such commentators and scholars as Mike Wallace, Roy Innis, and Kenneth W. Thompson. Students of the era as well as of the presidency and the evolution of domestic political and social affairs will find provocative and insightful observations in this volume.