1/11/2024 0 Comments Fdr fireside chats reagan![]() President Washington also began a tradition of New Year’s Day open-door receptions. The toughest audience of the year: How the White House Correspondents' Association dinner became a political, social showcaseĪmerica's pastime is White House staple: President Bush's first pitch, FDR's Opening Day record: Baseball plays major role in US history The White House is a bubble, insulating presidents behind layers of security, scheduling and staff. But our chief executives have always struggled to stay connected to citizens in a meaningful way – even as a growing nation has made leaders more remote, and technology and our changing culture have demanded a more personal presidency.įor George Washington, staying connected meant riding 1,700 miles on horseback and in carriages to visit every state of the new nation – attending his share of balls, receptions and banquets, to be sure, but also spending time with citizens in taverns, on front porches, and in dining rooms. And when he wasn’t out traveling, late afternoons were sometimes set aside for meetings with public callers, and evenings for dinner parties with invited guests. Click here to read an article by Brands that addresses more of the FDR-Reagan connection.Watch Video: Former President Obama speaks at MI rally Brands has written a new biography of Reagan ( Reagan: The Life), published in May 2015. New Book: Well-known presidential historian H.W. On signing a bill to stabilize Social Security, he reaffirmed Roosevelt’s signature Social Security legislation with the words that “Franklin Roosevelt’s commitment that Social Security must always provide a secure and stable base so that older Americans may live in dignity.” He would quote FDR in his speeches and letters and remind people that, like Roosevelt, he didn’t believe that public employees had the right to strike. FDR became the master communicator through radio, and Reagan became the great communicator through television. From there, he rose to be a prominent conservative spokesman, was elected twice as governor of California, and eventually succeeded in his quest of a dozen years when he won the presidency in 1980.Ĭontinued Respect for FDR: Despite Reagan closing the door against the Democratic Party, he continued to hold an abiding respect for Roosevelt, and learned from him. He liked to say that he hadn’t left the Democratic Party, but it had left him and no longer reflected his opinions. Finally, in 1962, at age 51, he made formal what had been simmering for years: he left the Democratic Party and became a Republican. His slowly shifting political philosophy was also nudged along when he found himself paying 90% of his earnings in taxes. But he became disillusioned by some of the bullying tactics (even against him physically) of the labor movement. As an actor, he became involved with the Screen Actors Guild and served as president of this actors’ union. Labor Disputes and Taxes: But it was in California after Roosevelt’s death that Reagan’s political philosophy began to shift. Reagan later recalled of that first Fireside Chat, in words that almost sound like him describing himself, that FDR’s “strong, gentle, confident voice resonated across the nation with an eloquence that brought comfort and resilience to a nation caught up in a storm and reassured us that we could lick any problem.” What Reagan Learned from FDR: Reagan learned from Roosevelt the importance of speaking to the common man, of offering encouragement and comfort, and of making complex issues simple and understandable. ![]() ![]() Reagan developed an imitation of FDR delivering a Fireside Chat with which he would amuse his friends. He joined hundreds of thousands of other Americans on March 12 to listen to FDR’s first Fireside Chat as the president explained the banking crisis. He was, in his own words, “an ardent New Dealer.”įireside Chats: In 1933, just days after FDR’s inauguration as president at the height of the Depression, with banks failing at an alarming rate and more and more Americans being thrown out of work, Reagan tuned in his radio. He would go on to vote for FDR three more times and cast his vote in 1948 for Harry Truman. He would promote FDR whenever he could as part of his radio announcer job, and he cast his first vote ever – for Roosevelt for president. ![]() ![]() “I soon idolized FDR,” Reagan later recalled. The New Deal rescued the Reagan family finances, proving work for Reagan’s father, Jack. Reagan Idolized FDR: As a young man who came of age during the Great Depression, Reagan idolized Franklin D. Ronald Reagan, our 40th president and the icon and hero of the modern conservative movement in American politics, was once a Democrat. ![]()
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