Product Description

In October 1964, Ronald Reagan gave a televised speech in support of Republican presidential nominee Barry Goldwater. "The Speech," as it has come to be known, helped launch Ronald Reagan as a leading force in the American conservative movement. However, less than twenty years earlier, Reagan was a prominent Hollywood liberal, the president of the Screen Actors Guild, and a fervent supporter of FDR and Harry Truman. While many agree that Reagan's anticommunism grew out of his experiences with the Hollywood communists of the late 1940s, the origins of his conservative ideology have remained obscure.

Based on a newly discovered collection of private papers as well as interviews and corporate documents, The Education of Ronald Reagan offers new insights into Reagan's ideological development and his political ascendancy. Thomas W. Evans links the eight years (1954-1962) in which Reagan worked for General Electric& mdash;acting as host of its television program, GE Theater, and traveling the country as the company's public-relations envoy-to his conversion to conservatism.

In particular, Evans reveals the profound influence of GE executive Lemuel Boulware, who would become Reagan's political and ideological mentor. Boulware, known for his tough stance against union officials and his innovative corporate strategies to win over workers, championed the core tenets of modern American conservatism-free-market fundamentalism, anticommunism, lower taxes, and limited government. Building on the ideas and influence of Boulware, Reagan would soon begin his rise as a national political figure and an icon of the American conservative movement.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #70032 in Books
• Published on: 2008-07-21
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 320 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Evans respectfully traces Reagan's change from New Deal liberal to economic conservative to his eight-year stint (1954–1962) as spokesman for General Electric, when he hosted GE's Saturday night television show, General Electric Theater, and toured GE plants nationwide. It was on tour that Reagan delivered early drafts of the 1964 pro-Goldwater "time for choosing" speech that would eventually thrust him onto the national political scene. As the mouthpiece for GE policy, Reagan was immersed in a free market ideology that stressed limited government and low taxes, explains Evans, an attorney who chaired the Reagan administration's national symposium on partnerships in education. The most intriguing chapters explore the tensions between Reagan's leadership of the Screen Actors' Guild—which went on strike in 1960—and his role as the public face of a company determined to prevent its unionized employees from striking. In the last chapter, Evans explicitly connects some of Reagan's presidential decisions—his insistence on restructuring taxes without cutting military spending, for example, and his oversight of the National Labor Relations Board—with his GE education. This fascinating study sheds new light on Reagan's ideological evolution. (Jan.)
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Review

"An elegant history of Reagan's 'studies' with General Electric." -- John H. Fund, The Wall Street Journal

"A revelation... Definitely worth reading for those who want to know how Ronald Reagan evolved into the 'Great Communicator' of political yore." -- A.G. Gancarski, The Washington Times

"[ The Education of Ronald Reagan] fills a hole in Reagan's biography." -- Daniel Oppenheimer, Sacramento News and Review

"Evans's book is essential reading... a reasoned exploration of the shaping of an extraordinary political career." -- Joseph C. Goulden, Washington Lawyer

"This fascinating study sheds new light on Reagan's ideological evolution." -- Publishers Weekly

"A better companion to [ The Reagan Diaries].... By focusing on the decade or so when Reagan was a traveling spokesman for General Electric& mdash;a period that he began as a Democrat and ended as a Republican& mdash;Evans does a persuasive job of explaining where Reagan's political views came from." -- Nicholas Lemann, New Yorker

" The Education of Ronald Reagan admirably fills... [a] gap... One of the most illuminating books ever written about Reagan." -- Jacob Heilbrunn, National Interest

"[ The Education of Ronald Reagan]provides fresh revelations on Reagan's ideological development... a 'must' for any college level collection." -- The Midwest Book Review

"Evans is undoubtedly correct to home in on the G.E. years as the key period in Reagan's self education." -- Steven F. Hayward, Claremont Review of Books

"Evans provides useful insight into Reagan's GE years and calls attention to the influence of Boulware. " -- Emilie Raymond, Register of the Kentucky Historical Society

"I recommend strongly that you get the (book)." -- Newt Gingrich, BizVoice

"An important work that ought to be read." -- Ronald W. Schatz, Labor History

Review

"The first satisfying account of how Reagan evolved into a conservative." -- Rick Perlstein, author of Before the Storm: Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus

Customer Reviews

Watching a President Develop
We have a tendency in this country to assume that when a president is thinking your way he is a genius. When he is presenting a position opposed to you; first he is an idiot, and second all his thoughts are really those of his handlers. Then the presidential advisors start leaving and writing books about how brilliant they are and the president just doesn't listen.

It's only when the books come out much later that we really begin to learn what was going on. In this book, the author concentrates on the magical speech that Reagan made in 1964 in support of Barry Goldwater at the Republican National Convention. 'The Speech' was a turning point in American politics. And of course the sarcastic will say that Reagan didn't write it but his handlers ....

This book goes back many, many years and reviews speeches that Reagan gave. From them comes a line here, a line there and in the end we get 'The Speech.' It's an interesting way to look at how Reagan changed from union president heading the Democrats for Truman to fundamentally changing the country's direction. Along the way we learn, Reagan was no dummy. And I think that as history continues to develop, his reputation will continue to go up.

Why Ronald Reagan was the Great Communicator
An excellent book and well written. In addition to showing how GE gave Ronald Reagan the opportunity to become a conservative and a great communicator it also provides a fascinating perspective on the battle between business and labor from 1950-1970. This book shows the journey that Reagan takes from being a confirmed New Dealer to a Goldwater conservative.

A 'must' for any college-level collection
The Education of Ronald Reagan: The General Electric Years and the Untold Story of His Conversion to Conservatism is a far different portrait of Reagan than typical biographies have covered. For one thing, the focus is much narrower and more specific: for another, it's based on a newly discovered collection of private papers, interviews and corporate documents, and provides fresh revelations on Reagan's ideological development. From mentors and influences on his development to the ideals of modern American conservatism, THE EDUCATION OF RONALD REAGAN is a 'must' for any college-level collection strong in not only Presidential analysis or Reagan in particular, but for those strong in American political debates.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch