Transcripts For CSPAN2 The Working Class Republican 20170819

Joins a panel to discuss Ronald Reagan and his book. This is an hour and 1 2. Good afternoon everyone. I am Karlyn Bowman is a great pleasure for myself and my cohost to welcome all of you and there was cspan artist to this afternoons event to celebrate the publication of henry olsens new book the working class republican Ronald Reagan and the return of bluecollar conservatism. Henry is a senior fellow at the ethics of Publics Health policy center a former colleague and a member in Good Standing of the election watch team. Henry arrived at aia in 2006 and was soon bonded over politics and especially what was then a somewhat obscured demographics with what they call some college, people with a technical vocational or Community College education. This group was large. About one third of voters and had a near perfect track record of voting for the winner in president ial elections. The loosely defined group roughly synonymous with the working class, was and is especially important in politics. In the book henry shows how reagans preferences match those of workingclass americans transcending left and right and providing the key to his success. Henrys book is basically divided into two parts. One on understanding the beliefs of the true reagan. Getting reagan right in henrys words. And the other appointed critique of how conservatives in a modern gop have lost their way and what they must do to recover it. We have a distinguished panel to cover both. Their bios are online so i will not provide long introductions. Henry is going to speak for about 20 minutes and then we have asked craig, the author of four books on reagan. And he is going to comment on henrys understanding of the true reagan. Craig will speak for 10 minutes. They will turn to bill will moderate the second half of todays discussion on the future of the gop. We are very fortunate to have ai fellow Jonah Goldberg and the center for American Progress is senior fellow, ruy teixeira. And he has a major you will be able to purchase copies of the books in addition to henrys books after the discussion. This is an embarrassment. We have a very tight timetable this afternoon so less get started. Please welcome henry olsen. [applause] i would like to thank aei and cspan for covering this. This is my first book. Tonight i would like to start by making Ronald Reagans last words my first. These are words that you can see on his gravestone as they sit looking over Southern California that he so deeply loved. I know in my heart that man is good. That what is right will eventually triumph. And that there is worth and purpose to each and every human life. My book is little more than an extended essay on the meaning of those words and how important they were to Ronald Reagan and how his incorporation and acting upon those did little more than change america and change the world. As carla noted my book is about more than that as well. It is about argument that the conservative movement has lost its soul. Because rather than following the real regular men that can say those words and make those the words he wants all of us remember him by, they have instead adopted a false reagan. A reagan that instead of being someone who loved mankind, someone that was in love with a abstract sense of liberty without no bounds. And administered to be someone who would be pragmatic can make sure that america would flow to everyone in the economy focused relentlessly on the business mans desire for serial selfimprovement as the core value of economic advancement. As a result my argument is that the Republican Party have failed to meet Ronald Reagans vision. That he set out in the 1977 speech to the conservative Political Action Committee Convention of a new Republican Party. A Republican Party where the cop, the farmer, the working man would have a seat at the Republican Party table that would combine conservatives of all stripes, social, physical and cultural end economic and defense conservatives into one majority party. The Republican Party remains today despite reagans advances what has been since the Great Depression. Americas second placed party. Year in and year and has fewer people that they belong to or support their ideals and say they will support the Democratic Party. Even as the gap has narrowed in the years after reagan. The Republican Party can fulfill the promise only i argue by recovering the real reagan and recovering the love of mankind and the approach to which that means one should take to government. That Ronald Reagan actually exhibited in his life. Let me talk about both of them. The reagan point is the one most controversial because it is in the face of what we have been told. Weve been told what i call innate reason magazine the high priest of reaganism. That he is little more than committed to the overthrow of the new deal as was goldwater in the early conservatives and libertarians. In fact nothing could be further from the case. From his earliest days he exhibited fidelity in the sense that government at local and state level is necessary but at a federal level, possible the federal level was necessary should ensure that americans have a hand up in the American Life and everyone has a chance to live a life of their own choosing. Even if requires government assistance. Then ill move on to the second point which is why it is that the republicans have lost their way and how it is that in a very odd sense, donald trump has recaptured some, not all, but some of the reagan insight. It is no surprise that Ronald Reagan and donald trump are the only two people who were republican nominees in last 40 years to win dramatically among whites without a College Degree and in the midwest and winning the state that determine who becomes president and states and constituencies since 1896 have determined which party runs the American National government. So why do i say that reagan was not an antinew deal conservative . It is because that is what he basically was telling people from the moment he stepped out onto the political sphere. Most people who have studied reagan know that he began life as an democrat. His father was a democrat, he inherited his fathers love of that party and the working man and added his own transport he memorized reagans or roosevelts fireside chats and 42 his coworkers. Rather than providing assistance to people who need assistance to overcalled overcome obstacles in the public life. Rated was a very smart man. He read incessantly and when he was as the child than on the movie set and for General Electric with though long train trips in and develop his own philosophy which is best expressed he was for government that would help people have a hand up he was for labor unions and Social Security and right to work was a major cause for go he opposed to work in 1958 and when he ran for governor he made clear he opposed that for right to work a lot. He said that over the past few decades engaged in welfare projects that cave had a price that he thought that no thinking individual would to repeal them regardless of the cost of a forward thinking on our part. He does on specifically reference the new deal but that is exactly the progress of programs from William Buckley National Review. He supported eisenhower twice while National Review was was holding there in person and. He quoted nixon enthusiastic owe the head enthusiastically. In even as he matured he would hear to the philosophy that no one should be denied health care because of lack of funds and repeated that statement 1954 giving his television address with Barry Goldwater which makes him a National Star of it continues to run for governor them to try to engage the private initiative of the bureaucratic control. That doesnt mean do with those that had been adopted when he became governor rather than make a frontal assault on medicare or medicaid as the ultraconservative said they made the of the major the budget was balanced making sure only those through no fault of their own heated support so there was that phrase that Franklin Roosevelt used to describe who deserved Government Support in the of fireside chat. The social safety nets in you would be exempt from the budget cuts even with that Economic Disaster to be the great pressing problem people who genuinely needed assistance people on medicaid and Social Security so long as they were genuine and that group was a very large group. He has quoted from fdr extensively but even in ways that are not a acknowledged his death was so great that he would roosevelt that the drop of a hat without even acknowledging he went off script once to join me as we begin the cruz say together in a moment of silent prayer the first republican nominee to even mention roosevelt in the of a Convention Speech but only the oldest would remember lit the call for joining together with a crusade to save america. Are you better off than you were four years ago . That that next paragraph asking americans questions this whole section was lifted from the fed fireside chat. He was indebted to roosevelts vision. In the sense ameritech should not return to what existed prior. Where he had opposed an increasingly interested in power but this was exemplified but does he said over and over the reason he opposed the was necessary and that they should support them for the states to create those programs that if more money would needed to put that up and continued to push for onesizefitsall regardless of need and with the socialized medicine in your society some shoe could the legitimacy the lead humid need to much less commandandcontrol. The Republican Party talks the language of the supplyside economics he refused to adopt by himself when reagan was running for president he never mentioned the phrase entrepreneur the only time when he enters the race 1979 at the first inaugural address. Reagan believed in bottomup economy every buddies were discounted and the Republican Party that can talk to those reagan democrats after him his successors in failed to attract the support with i am to local questions because i just did nazi anything that supported for somebody that had that balance with individual security that they ascribed to the new deal the ones in america begins a hand up or that lays its hands too heavily. Donald trump is many things. But one thing he did do was operate as of laser focus and told them he understood there paid in a banded by a government who do and along for have their values and if that meant he would fight the trade deals that he was for that. He was a part from begin in theory but similar to reagan in practice and trying to fight unfair trade practices. Putting sanction the sanctions on japanese motorcycles. If you ever see a harleydavidson that was Ronald Reagan stopped them from being plucked out of business when they had an unfair competition by subsidize japanese imports. Talk about immigration in a language Ronald Reagan would never use. Because we were losing control of the of borders to make sure that santry cannot take all of them because america was so rich chicken never accommodate all the people donald trump was on to something and of missing link with us this regard all too often has provided individual securities amazon to something of a party has missed to win the five dominated midwestern states. Iowa ohio michigan pennsylvania wisconsin the was the first person since reagan to take all five of those states. The only way forward for the Republican Party was to make that coalition in solid. And to bring back those that the negative aspect pushed away but that party is a combination of republicans and conservatives of all make san backgrounds of all creeds and classism in genders with reducing taxes where necessary giving the regulation the al ginsberg. So that interprets roosevelts new deal rather than oppose is set and put america on the path will over a century to accommodate competition of modern life while maintaining american freedom. But i believe we can do it because in our hearts they said in the 2016 primary with debris ejected the high priest and the candidates on the platform that was adopted. I just want to ask you a question so what they continue to do what has been doing. If it continues for the next tenures then we will be better off. Will that be lower and regulations smaller . Do you think traditional values would be more respected . Do you think we would be more respected . Do you thing we will have attracted the First Time Since 1932 more people will tell pollsters that the it to say theyre democrats over republicans over democrats . And if we follow that course and we would the columbus day audience in one of the last political speeches speaking to a tight americans. Will whole party of of harry truman though little secret when though left took over we took over the Republican Party. And that is untrue the people who want security and opportunity to have a place and this is now the last best hope to make his dream come true to put a map to put conservative as some of the full governing philosophy of america to make it a shining city on the hill that reagan always dreamed it could be. [applause] when we first spoke about this event i asked how he would like to respond. What does Craig Shirley thing . Were very pleased to have him with us today. What did he get right . But i do enjoy reading people. I have interviewed many, many people to baker and nancy reagan one of them was alice cooper. But it turns out he was a reagan supporter 1980 so i contacted his office and voted for reagan in did not want to do it and i said why . Alice was drunk. [laughter] what you mean . Said she said alice was drunk 1976 through 83. [laughter] i said all the time . She said yes. Pretty much. [laughter] such a thing he may have rediscovered the joys of book writing somebody asked what is the most popular form of writing . Letters . Speeches . Book writing . I said the most profitable form is ransom notes. [laughter] history is written backwards so i will do is talk about what first surprise henry and wellliked about his book he opens up a new discussion about Ronald Reagan that is not complete the examined or that we dont fully know or under reported of his maturation. How does he go . He was dead hemophiliacs liberal. Going from those supporters to the libertarian conservative as of . Budget is important discussion because knowledge is good. [laughter] but how does he go . What does he read or who does he talk to . What are the effects of the Eureka College . Where he first learned that smoothawley was the cause of the Great Depression where he developed the school of economics. Is saber the discussion. Also the henry writes in his book that reagans mind has been under appreciated and that is also true. One of the closest aides said he thought the iq was 150 or higher had genius level. The way he a thought about things or rejected he like to find other solutions. The lozenges mutually assured destruction and with Freedom Fighters in afghanistan and nicaragua to win the hearts and minds of people in with those responses to the soviet incursions if you read reagans columns or the radio addresses for the speeches to say this is a very powerful man. And you can see over the years he is becoming more mature and reflective and subtle in his thinking and it centers on the rights and dignity and freedom of the individual. And uses that word many many times including as president of the United States. I have three broad areas of disagreement, he rejects the idea of reagan was a libertarian. But he was traditional on issues like drug use and the other excesses with a flower child generation and john patrick wrote a very important book and in the first their raft of the first page he says reagan drew limited inspiration from thomas paine and he quoted him often. Because he quoted in a loft is a known not to get into the weeds but the 1980 campaign uses a curious phrase. We say man and god and he says man with god. And lessen the sense of pain and that alignment teaches man is at the center of the universe and to give a speech at harvard and to say how can these both the favorites of Ronald Reagan . I think he believes man is a spiritual being so he is at the center of the universe because god wanted him there. So there is no contradiction in reagans mind and peace synthesizes the two positions and in 1975 just weeks before a he would take on ford in the republican primary he gives an interview to cbs to mike wallace is a good friend of nancy reagan and in this interview up that the ranch broadcast november 75. But reagan goes into great length to explain in the of libertarian philosophy on the rights and dignity in the privacy and is very impressive for many years during the 70s he would call himself a libertarian conservative and i believe that he believed that in the abstract leading to the of practical terms referred to himself over many years as of libertarian conservative and they say dyfed as you talk about anyway so he did believe in it so with regard to the new deal that yes it is right human beings over cash but also individuals of a state managed economy and you also write he was a republican new deal we just got that phrase and i would hate to use the the republican new dealer introduced into the lexicon because they dont think that he was and he rejected the policies of the new deal because they did not work but there were things he knew he could do the weather is in the diaries dismissing tip oneill in 1975 where he rejects the new deal as the panacea to solve everything is pretty much rejected the of politics and policies like the spirituality that it was of mechanism to bring them together last is the new deal as health and did compare writing speeches was loosely fascism. Sova diary entry mentioning book marathon sold looking at his relationships morceli and if he was for it or against it so the country is in deep recession and american spirit is low and that is what he concentrated on. I have one minute. That is the uppermost in his mind not getting rid of Social Security or the new deal programs but he was a political realist than Social Security and other programs were still popular. So i will conclude by saying i really appreciate this panel but we almost have gone to underestimate Ronald Reagan to over intellectualizing and i hope that is not true. Secretary of state said this is a guide who was a lot of fun at the central core the back in the 60s at the height of the vietnam war. I dont know but he carried a sign that said make love not war. And says from the looks of it i dont think he could do either. [laughter] i have 1 million things to say about this book you will be relieved to hear our will not say any of them. With the moderate moderator job is to be moderate or sulphur straight so i will turn directly first to jonah and then i will give henry a chance as he chomps at the bit to respond to what he has heard the engine of the offering can Free Exchange of views and then turn to the audience of and even for one minute to to get that political philosophy that has helped me to see for the first time and to be be. I dont have the of law at the time so i will not keep you long. [laughter] let me say it up front and make some important points negative fdr is the not the person but those whose studied the elections have this is good at it i consider math which craft. [laughter] so he makes three basic arguments that the debate on the book will generate. The first he was less of a reagan night but the first to run serve more important aspect of pet the but i always thought a new do republican was to he was not from the progressive wing and also not with nelson rockefeller. But, as opposed the talking of the future of the gnp in my fundamental disagreement and much i do agree some design and violent disagreement press this is supposed to be detaining. Entertaining so we make this like. So this and her sainted we could uncover him and he will of aluminate the password for all time. And he was a new deal republican i am not in terror entirely convinced that is right about one of the things they dont understand about Ronald Reagan so here is what i absolutely agree with. Solfeggio p last few election cycles have been crippled to launch the of primary debate on cspan in iowa and New Hampshire with the g. O. P. Candidates the dirtiest reenactments five spartacus paso first of all, the d he doesnt have the best grasp of what pope Politics Today requires but one of the problems of the g. O. P. Is is is obsessed with security and principles. Dont get me wrong i like those in have dedicated my life, but it is promoting a conservative principles. Once you get into a contest costs of the idea that i used leucine and will require your coalition is better flat file i definition are excluded if rather than an enticing people in effect for this gets me to 5. About Ronald Reagan. But he was a move could pilots fly he did is he stories and bring in a speech that bad is the ninth half period rated were hard wired to prove but of the black incredibly frustrated the last few cycles in particular with the election of donald trump the way in which the very same high priest has basically been back anybody who wants to be a policy innovator this isnt like reagan we have to cut the marginal tax rates we went from 70 or whenever down at 30 and would like to cut them lower. But it is just day matter of logic. And then to help the white in but there is a lot of fearful would said that is not in all of a sudden but he was thrown into the bus for not pulling him out entirely. But maybe eds people look to you read the entrench to fit in trying to find over and over may be we would have life better for the white workingclass i can stay in the white workingclass like everything is going to effort so maybe if we were allowed but we would have won over so well they have ruined the aisle will just close with the lowest point another to meet with the old man believed. Of to those seniors if you know, where the old man select the very often they wander into vista zero end but it makes people laugh and run into his job to enter because they dont feel they eliot their back and added cedars of of the hit but there was none see him as much of a comparative figure. Thank you. [applause] q. Did it in nine minutes. See if you can do even better. [laughter] and i. M. A long time more and then with in edna olive negative in the open tuesday into frigid and then you talk about the future that is part of the of part of the panel in one thing that makes clear if we understand Ronald Reagans political success than the more recent the Republican Party has been. But in 1980 the first of zero and confess if but i bet time donald trump was elected 2016 down a 45 so theyve managed to receive your i realize this center dispute but theres a difference between a year and traded as low the reagan approach you could think of loyal opposition to the welfare state. According to hungary dont take away the new deal but above all whenever you do dont take stuff off they devilish it is not an but it is like Barry Goldwater and with that populism on top of that he seems to be as close to the night watching the stage as possible. The new deal is a bad idea. And that involves taking stuff away from people then so be it. As comrades dahlin said you cannot make an omelet without breaking eggs and i think as those seem to believe if its got to be done it has got to be done so with this argument in a sense this disguised but there are in and then having to deal with the weakness of the opposition, i am somewhat sympathetic but we have to be realistic would get the way Political Parties tend to look at things and say it looks pretty golden to me like we have had a lot of success to with those majority of governors and the house and the presidency if its not broke then dont fix it possibly the biggest obstacle henry has but it being fed is not where they are coming from but also about zero longterm problem but but then to be in that direction and more than a couple of years every means big the neil b. Though more than tax collectors hidden the other broke having this discussion with the argument today how the g. O. P. Is rejecting can but they have the vision of the 121st century to the bells of the vision of american governments at the end of the 21st century. They believe they should tax people less. And who lives the stores is . To neck and necessarily around a vision or a country they could create the current republican in eight sets of this delayed that economic chirk three. People over 20 percent so the arco the moral universe is long and means to the left that is the theory of my book. [laughter] but that is my view we will see if they can prove me wrong. [applause] but that moderation without distinction in davos had been a wholly when it sounds like the mclaughlin group. Cry appreciate your experimentation. People share their favorite stories than mine was when he was governor if they walk like tarzan and smells like teen event the last one is cheetahs. So to go into this into great detail in the book those pages that i go through but what do you mean . That reagan used the term in a way that libertarians use it so what role should government have . In his interview with reason magazine and can see those that inspired by letting those of individual choice flourish but not at the expense of social protections of he is pushed shouldnt be providing or high financing Higher Education those are the points which is the of hyper libertarian point. So that is a liberty inspired of anything it they would use. So now what does the new deal mean . Traditionally we had the idea that government is always getting larger and the orbiter of how society should develop end of that polar opposite i get into this extensively in the book but we find he wasnt an expansion but he opposed that he was for that in 1940 in some extent but he was opposed later but he was for interpreting where roosevelt did insofar we are removed from what life was like it does want to remind you that before the new deal it was the goal to fire people who belonged to labor unions. There is no such thing as comprehensive Unemployment Insurance for go before there are colleges but no extensive public universities or Community Colleges are at stake the state level no federal transportation the new deal republican eisenhower created the interstate highway that well take for granted comes into being because of the innovation brought about during the presidency of Franklin Roosevelt. He never rejects less he ever said from the moment he gives speeches or talking on behalf of goldwater and cutting back the excess isnt eliminating the idea that should be the center of American Life. He is not for going back to the new world been done deal authentic because those otherwise were really being those democrats to adopt those solutions and instead reagin perhaps a third way between social democracy and gives it a name called conservativism. Also principal verses ideology reagan is somebody who is a man of principle and not an ideologue so his party speeches and extensive that puts fact behind principles like lambs extending over. And if not you have not read Percy Jackson that he was the man that we have mistaken principle for ideology and innovation that there is a right way of thinking about things and though way of which constant conscience of a conservative is some. The realities of everyday life and consequently the everyplace reagan goes is a conservative when he is pledged in power people say he is not the person they thought. He changes his mind and decides is more important to accommodate blacks than stand on the principle of liberty and decides he has changed his mind on open housing. They were gassed and they opposed him 1980 in 1984. And that is one of libertarians believe. And tuesday he was one of the of worse. With those who oppose Ronald Reagan to the right both opposed proposed during the Social Security reform. But i invite you to read my book with one dead other thing. Bettis is spot on endeavor like to tell him so. [applause] now you have 12 minutes to go at it. [laughter] sometimes i am confused because he says reagan is a and he broke for the diary beaches. In 1977 the fight of those men and Women Mission of those liberals in washington and there is a good deal. From what i talk about,. Sorry state of affairs. He is d announcing the failures seen a play he is developing that he does say that as the father of his onetime fiancee you cut up with him in then they open the call for statecontrolled directed economy. And the wealth of the Democratic Party rejected that. 1948 the repeal of the argument could flow into civil but weve built the imitate the in negative character arrangement with the compelling argument this is a is no need of everybody believes government in its is good and more is better but what you have overlooked that is the first three stricken have to show that few because part of the problem is a bit kinky or write it is a lot of different things. The part of the new deal im willing to stick with. But q Johnson Center a in the blue eagle i cant stand that. All of those that are truly aboveboard and outrageous. There are a lot and different new deals. I think this gets salty maestro, the American Enterprise was founded in 1938 to be the hotbed of these new deals. There was some work being done. So, over 25 years ago and im a little policy research nerd. Josh, scholar at a give a friday talk about neoconservativism. I remember being proud of myself because i asked a question saying what was Ronald Reagan and, he answered Ronald Reagan was selected to be a foreignpolicy president. And was smart enough to get the social services on board. A guy named irwin stelter was an economist cap. This is said you have it wrong. Reagan was an economic conservative. He managed to commit to his campaign the social conservatives and then michael novak, one of my dear friend says i cannot believe what im hearing. Everyone knew that the fundamental essence of Ronald Reagan campaign was social conservativism in prolife and christian and he would manage to make that into for Economic Services to bleed. And when they when added it was like this episode of seinfeld where jerry gives the entire pizza restaurant to fight about abortion. I was proud that i was the one who set it off. This gets me to my point. I think its very difficult to pick any one of these threads from Ronald Reagan was very small but wasnt an intellectual or philosopher, he was a politician who taxed around. You all defend ideology to my last breath. But, this idea that there is a true reagan that sounds all of these questions about policy issues, dont think its right weather comes from the high priest recalled olson school of revisionist. Roy you get the less, before we turn to q a. I really dont know what reagan really mentor said, let you guys fight that up. I will say this, if were going to think about what made Ronald Reagan attractive as a politician with his what is six ice was based on, the seems pretty clear that they voted for reagan and they liked reagan because he more represented what henry says reagan relisted for which is this lets get rid of the excesses but keep the new deal programs to keep the secure live. Well get the bureaucracy after an and not take anything away from you. I think thats the Ronald Reagan they voted for. I dont think they voted for the reigning philosophy of the party today which is like spend as little as possible if you take stuff away from people because thats the right thing to do. I dont think thats what they voted for them. Okay audience. You get the next 14 minutes. I have two requests. First of all, wait until the microphone reaches you. And secondly, identify yourself before you ask a brief question. No speeches or statements please. The gentleman in the front. Good evening. And thank you for coming. This is been very exhilarating. My name is julian lewis, i Study International policy in washington, d. C. I would like to know, i just left the embassy of sweden today and the speaker of the parliament for lafayette and norway were there. We discussed the 10 Approval Rating the President Trump and the Republican Party has across the baltic state. We discussed the impression that european nations were happen on the College Students there were producing due to her political climate. What do you all think we can do to improve the perception globally due to recent developments in the United States to increase the Approval Rating and what these nations think about what were producing on an international and collegiate level now . Who wants to try that one . You brought up a related subject. Is not even been addressed and thats the cold war. That was the prevailing issue of the 1980s. 1980 we are losing the cold war to the soviets. They had gone into southeast asia, nicaragua had fallen, there in afghanistan fallen and 79 by every measurable standard we are losing the cold war to the soviets. Eight years later, or winning the cold war and in the course of 1917 to 1980 every present gave a territories president s until reagan and then reagan is selected and in eight years they dont give up. I think two, that part of reagans one of the big goals was the defeat of soviet communism. Ive always believed that simpson and 86 which everybody lit says that reagan was a liberal, is really more about gorbachev and the cold war and him not handing the pr of pr bonanza. And in a time when were preaching freedom and telling him to tear down the wall. A lot of the refugees were from communist cuba and nicaragua who came into the United States seeking political asylum. I dont know what the answers your question. I know the cold war is not been addressed or not. I think it would be terrific if we adjust ourselves of that as well. Pgh so, the woman in the front row. And then i will shift to a different part of the room. You made a statement that the gop has note from america. Thats a david brooks a. It im going to ask you to comment on that if you please and the reason im asking is that the extension of the statement about the government that they have for country as a whole. Middledot that bullet. I think david has a good point. I think one of i get asked a lot that Wire Democrats a much better politics and republicans are. For reasons that i think have been put out doesnt seem obvious to democrats who dont control in the government but theres a sense that democrats live and breathe politics in a way and they get help from the media they get to define issues in a way that republicans never can. I think part of it is that republicans politicians tend to be more normal people. What i mean by that is. Click the president . [laughter] and debate i would call that a directive. But one of the liberating things about being politically homeless is i dont really have to defend way want to defend remember when ron johnson ask Hillary Clinton about benghazi and she said that this point what difference does it make and she won this round of 30 years earlier ron johnson was trying to figure out how to get along to get pallets of plastic from oshkosh to st. Paul and Hillary Clinton was that a law firm where she was doing her thesis on lewinsky. There is a sense in which the liberals who going to politics limit much more seriously in the standard republican is usually a guy who comes from a midwestern town is a little successful in business, a leader in his community and church and he says, i want to get back. Succumb to missouri i dont want to say myopic, but narrow frame of American Culture that does not speak well to bigs loss of American Culture. Democrats have a similar problem but the reverse image and so a lot of republicans think im you go to washington and bring my business skills and make sure the accounts Payable Department runs well. Liberals have a vision for what society should look like. Republicans have a vision this is just get it out of peoples way. Government is the problem there. Its not the problem there necessarily for the inner cities around the coast. Its not the way people see things outside of red states. Conservatives need to do more work of figuring out a vision about what the country supposed to look like for people who dont already greet them. The signature problem. You make a good living only talking to audiences who already agree with you. That leaves you blind to what other people think and how to address and persuade them. Its a problem. I think of donald trump is not helping in this regard. I dont really care what young people in a train young people in locks you think. But i care about what the conservative movement does and what people in america think about it. And whatever you think of donald trump, hes making things up fairly toxic to welleducated millennials and should be the future of the American Party and that something we will have to deal with. I will now turn to the side of the room. I much. I love this panel discussion. Weve been talking about trump and reagan, media something that comes up quite a bit. Media did not necessarily like Ronald Reagan. I would like your comment, if donald trump how could he handled the media like Ronald Reagan did . Reagan did not shut them out. Reagan was one of the most successful president s of the modern era. The media was not kind to Ronald Reagan, the night of the iowa caucus when he unexpectedly lost to george bush in a huge upset, tom of nbc when a National News and said, weve just witnessed the political funeral Ronald Reagan. Course six weeks later he wins a huge victory in the New Hampshire primary. The National Media and post routinely savage Ronald Reagan, even the week of his funeral their writing articles about whether he had affairs in the state of his and mrs. Reagans marriage. The post was horrendous to reagan the New York Times was not much better. The fact of the matter is, but he had never really shut them out. He never criticize them, theres a time where he wrote a letter to cal thomas and he simply said, the l. A. Times is not my corner. And that was the extent. This is a guy who made 55 movies. And some of them were really bad. But he developed a thick skin. Through much of his career. The radio career where you would get criticism from the moody careers that his last movie, the killers was widely panned. By the time he is in politics, he has learned to take criticism and not take it too personally. He with ago in his diaries that people he did not like her reporters he did not like, he once wrote in his diary about a senator who is a pompous, no good fat head. He later wrote the Something Else nasty about Senate Another senator. He had his ways of handling the sinks do not to publicly. He might vent to mrs. Reagan. He was really benton his diaries. But the time is president he developed a thick skin. He can turn away criticism on like trump who cannot turn away criticism. The woman in the second row. Then if theres time, ill take one more question. About six years ago, several countries inaugurated reagan statues. I think that spoke to the aspirational and inspirational aspect of reagan. Most importantly the end of communist at aspiration of communist and his visceral hatred of communism. I wonder if that aspect of raised reagan which was so defining all around the world to millions of people, does that stand closer to henry olsons version of all reagan are more Craig Shirleys version of reagan . I think its both. Reagan was an inspirational leader. He remains one of the foremost successful president s of the history of this country. Reagan, when he was a hemophiliac was opposed to tierney in the form of fascism. He spoke about it and nearly identical words when communism became more of a clear enemy he always opposed to selfappointed elite who thought that they should have the ability to rule over the many in the name of a few. Whether that was fascist, communist,. He was just as hardly anti nazi and anti fascists and anti japanese imperialism. He may have been more anticommunist those because the duration and the threat. We beat the nazis and we beat japan and he had to deal with communist infiltration and hollywood movie unions firsthand. He was trying to fight for at that time deal liberalism. He had an agent call us home and threw acid in front of his face. He is licensed to carry a gun for sixmonth. They have a bullet in the Head Quarters with reagans name etched on it. We have time for a quick question and quick answer. And then i have to take us out. Gentleman in the front. Hello. So reagan had no differences with rockefeller moderate republican is. He had a lot of differences with them. But, in many ways reagan did not dispute some of the innovations that they supported. He did not have a problem with the expansion of state which is one of the way that rockefeller advocated. What reagan always opposed was state centered the government was the arbiter of all things and that the only action was the appropriate response. Is very much opposed to that wing of the Republican Party. He supported eisenhower when eisenhower was supposed. He was enthusiastic about nixon when it and was called into question 1960. He was somebody who i dont think fit neatly into the old category of left and right because he transcended those. Rockefellers difficult because their personal friends. Mrs. Reagan really liked him. They Work Together 1968 to stop Richard Nixon there that concerned about next and as president of the United States. Here is the reagan discovery that im so excited about that i wanted to share with the rest of the world. Thank you cspan. On page 218, we read that reagan believed that you deserved a minimal standard of living so long as you contributed according to ability. Of page 267 we read that reagan believed that benefits should go to people who need them. Each according to the ability. Where have we heard that before . Sadly i have to bring this to a close. I want to begin by thanking bill, always a pleasure to host things with you. And i think our hot panelist and finally to offer my congratulations to henry olson, good friend for this new book and please, buy books there for sale and they will all be here to autograph their books if youd like to have them do so. Thank you. [applause] [inaudible]listen using the fren radio out. In this final battle, joseph writes about the last days of Franklin D Roosevelts life. He talked about the book at the fdr library in hyde park new york, this is 45 minutes. Enough new. Weve had a great day so far, welcome those of you who are new