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The relative rise of conservatism in the XX century United States began around 1950s, and continued through 1970s, at that time the movement was marked by the general diligence, as well as the beginning of actions and the birth of ideas which crystallized only later, in the framework of the third wave of conservatism and the so-called “Reagan Era”. The conservative period in 1970s could be characterized as the backlash to various civil rights movements, including the feminist and the anti-racist movements, while the 1980s were the time of action more than reaction, when the ideas of 1950s clarified from anachronisms and aligned with modern values were incorporated into the paradigm of “modern conservatism” and brought into action by Reagan himself and his administration. The purpose of this paper is to look more closely at the conservative tradition during Reagan’s period, using the work of James Oakes, and also to investigate the following questions: whether there was something new and revolutionary about the “Reagan Revolution” and how the Reagan presidency was able to change the nature of American politics.
Oakes et al. speak about the origins of the contemporary conservatism from the positions of interpretation of the 1960s events. He notes that at the beginning of his term Reagan had to face the nation’s insecurity about the future, which after the war in Vietnam and the economic decline seemed very strong. Being a charismatic leader, Ronald Reagan was able to reassure his fellow citizens with his speeches “to stir up patriotic emotions and to persuade Americans that the Vietnam War had been a “just cause” worth supporting” (Oakes et al. 923). With that rhetoric Regan assured the restoration of the US military power, and the Reagan Doctrine has had significant influence over American foreign policy.
The confrontation with the Soviet Union, which lasted almost until the downfall of the “evil empire” itself, the aggressive anticommunist policy in the Third World countries, mainly including Central and Southern America and the attempts to pacify the Middle East, backed up by the necessity to secure the US oil supplies and to help the ally state of Israel, all of these strategies illustrated the active approach aimed at restoring the nation’s sense of self-esteem, while at the same pursuing the less obvious benefits. Oakes agrees that “Reagan successfully combated the sense of national decline that had pervaded America in the 1970s … His presidency re-invigorated faith in capitalist innovation, minimal government, and American military power” (Oakes et al. 941). After years of failures in foreign policy, such an aggressive promotion of American values and excellence has become a welcome novelty and change, and not only brought high popularity to Reagan and his cabinet but also revived the conservative movement as a whole.
Another sign of novelty introduced by Reagan to the conservative tradition was the supply-side principle in economics, which allowed the Reagan administration to take the methods of conservative economics further and cut the taxes dramatically to produce more tax revenues. Oakes in his book chapter “The Triumph of Conservatism” notes that this decision became an important victory for Reagan and Reaganomics, “it cut federal income taxes 5 percent the first year and 10 percent in each of the next two years” (Oakes et al. 920). Strangely enough, this controversial move along with other economical methods, including “stagflation”, has brought the necessary effect, although after a few years of recession. Some critics still think that the Reaganomics should not be given credit for the economic growth; however, this new decision has brought even more success to the “modern conservatism” in the middle of 1980s.
Reagan’s government had infused some “fresh blood” into the traditions of conservatism, at the same time allowing to establish some of the 1960s achievements, when “disadvantaged groups made … little political progress in the 1980s, but conservatives also made little progress in their social and cultural agenda” (Oakes et al. 933). However, the stalemate of the traditional values versus the democratic ideas could have as well been a result of a chaotic social policy of the modern conservatives. Some of the struggles were plagued with scandals in the governing circles and among the supporters of Reagan, although they did not involve or affect the President directly, but still made Reagan compromise more with the Senate.
The mix of forced trade-offs to the Democratic Party and the use of innovative approach in some areas of political life of the country, including giving support to the “Golden Belt” of the US, where the new technologies were experiencing rapid development, has marked the new era of optimistic yet compromising conservatism with loud-voiced rhetoric and a less speaking actions. All the while, “Reagan Revolution” owes much to the achievements of previous waves of conservative policy, and essentially was a direct development of the socio-political life of the 60s and 70s, governed by the laws of the new era and the rapid progression of events. Indeed, Oakes characterizes Reagan as “typically modest” and giving credit to “American policies reaching back to the 19 40s” (Oakes et al. 939). Although the accomplishments of the new conservatism were fragile, the confident leadership and optimism have given support to business innovation and restored faith in the democratic system once again.
Works Cited
Oakes, James, Michael McGerr, Jan Ellen Lewis, Nick Cullather, Jeanne Boydston, Mark Summers, and Camilla Townsend. Of the People: A History of the United States, Concise, Volume II, Since 1865. 2nd ed. 2013. Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press. Print.
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