Former President Ronald Reagan warned us about this year’s election. As we head to the polls, our liberties are on the ballot. We are voting to protect our personal freedoms.
Reagan reminded us that our freedoms are not something to take for granted. Rather, they are something we have to fight for and protect as a nation.
In 1987, Reagan said, “It is time that we ask ourselves if we still know the freedoms that were intended for us by the Founding Fathers and if we will pass on to these young people the freedoms we knew in our youth, because freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. It has to be fought for and defended by each generation.”
Reagan’s statements are still true today. Every election season, we are not only voting for our current circumstances, but also for the freedoms of the next generation.
Your vote can limit government control.
When Reagan took office in 1981, our world was still grappling with the Cold War. The economy was bleak – taxes and unemployment were high. Overall, our nation’s spirits were low. Reagan embarked on a campaign to restore prosperity in the United States.
During his inaugural address for his first term in office, Reagan reminded us that an invasive government is not the solution. “In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.”
Reagan worked to limit the control of the government through cutting taxes and government expenditures. During his first year in office, Reagan signed the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981. This reduced individual tax rates and spurred incentives for small businesses. Two years into his presidency, the economy started to recover.
Our economy depends on your vote.
Reagan warned us of a government overreach of our economy. In his remarks to the state chairperson of the National White House Conference on Small Business in 1986, Reagan said, “Back then, government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it. Well, with your help, I think we’ve turned all that around.”
During his second term, Reagan would sign the Tax Reform Act of 1986, which resulted in the lowest individual and corporate tax rates of any major industrialized country in the world.
Reagan’s two terms as president saw a flourishing economy with limited government control. This included an increase in new jobs, a decline in unemployment, a rise in real gross national product and a cut by more than half of the prime interest rate. Reagan’s leadership showed that a laissez-faire economy is what our nation needs.
Government is not the answer to our problems – all of us coming together is the solution.
Similar to present circumstances, our nation needed someone to bolster confidence in the American people. Reagan revived the spirit of America. He proved during his presidency, what we need now. When the American people come together, we can endure any difficulty. When the economy thrived, the American people thrived.
Reagan believed that the role of the government was to serve the people. It was this belief that led to decisions of deregulation and resulted in the largest peacetime economic boom in American history.
Elections have consequences. Reagan made it clear when he reminded us, “If fascism ever comes to America, it will come in the name of liberalism.” We can’t sit idly by when our liberties are at stake. If you want to live in a free and open country, you need to vote accordingly.