Ronald Reagan is among the most courageous of presidents. This is not because of his glamorous personality, or his unfading pride in the United States of America’s success, or his ability to reach out to every American, although these traits were most certainly needed for his successful presidency. No, Reagan is most courageous in how he enacted his ideas, through the demise of much of Communism not just in America, but in the world as a whole (Doherty 61).

First, Reagan was entirely in opposition to Communism from the start. He displayed these ideas before he became governor, when he was elected president of the Screen Actors Guild in Hollywood (Doherty 26). At this time, “some unions came under the influence of Communists” (Ronald Reagan Presidential Library). Reagan at first tried to make peace, but he soon learned that these Communists were violent, radical people. Despite threats made by these radical Communists to him and his family, Reagan testified against them, naming every threat to the FBI (Doherty 23).

When running for president in 1980, he promised the people that he would increase the size of the military, seeing it as “the best way to negotiate with non-diplomatic nations” (Reagan, Ronald Wilson Reagan). During the campaign, Reagan frequently drew attention to the fallacies of his opponent, Jimmy Carter. His first point was Carter’s unsuccessful attempt to free fifty-two Americans, at the cost of eight American servicemen (Davis 30). His final slogan: “Are you better off than you were four years ago?” (Davis 30). Reagan won.

As he entered office in January of 1981, America’s relations with other superpower nations were very poor. People were beginning to think that nuclear arms should be disabled. Realizing this, Reagan addressed the Soviet Union as an “evil empire” in one of his speeches and developed a new space-based defense system (Doherty 35). This new system, called SDI (space defense initiative) was only one of many acts Reagan took to ensure “peace through strength” (Biography of Ronald Reagan). In fact, during his two terms, he increased defense spending by thirty-five percent (Biography of Ronald Reagan). “In 1982 the United States faced growing world criticism because of its plans to position thousands of new missiles in Western Europe, aimed at Soviet cities” (Doherty 60), not to say Reagan succeeded in doing so. These enormous strides for a large military led to heavy criticism, but Reagan had the courage to go one step further.

Reagan created a counterrevolutionary force, called the Contras, to attack Communist government. However bold this may have seemed, Congress forbade any U.S. force from interfering with any kind of country’s internal government, as long as it was contained within its land (Reagan 53). Almost contrary to this, Reagan sent five thousand troops to the Caribbean Island of Grenada, in response to Cuban and Soviet Communist activity. Ironically, this proved a popular decision with the people, but not with Congress, since he nearly violated the terms of Congress (Davis 40). This was not opposing Congress, because the Soviets and Cubans were trying to convert Grenada to Communism. Reagan had the courage to test these conditions.

During his second term in 1985, Reagan turned his attention to the Soviets. Meeting the Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, instilled in Reagan a sense of friendliness, at a personal level. Their first issue to discuss was the reduction of nuclear arms (Kaplan, Ron and Mikhail’s Excellent Adventure). This led to months of negotiation, but with Reagan’s warm personality and friendly trustworthiness, Gorbachev and Reagan finally came to a compromise. Both signed the Treaty on the Elimination of Intermediate-Range and Shorter Range Nuclear Forces (INF) in 1987, by which both nations eliminated most of their nuclear and conventional missiles (Doherty 75). This was a major positive event in Reagan’s presidency, another step further toward the end of Communism in the Soviet Union.

Lastly, one of the most controversial issues of Reagan’s presidency was the Iran-Contra Scandal. The first issue arose when evidence was found that the U.S. government was supporting Contras in Nicaragua, a socialist country, in overthrowing their government (Davis 42). To make matters worse, more evidence was found that the U.S. was selling arms to Iran in order to fund Contra operation in Nicaragua. Despite Reagan’s claimed innocence, in a matter of days his approval rating dropped fourteen percent (Kaplan 23). Again, Reagan rose, to further battle Communism. As in the words of Patricia Schroeder: “Nothing stuck to him: not revelations of wrongdoing by aides, not occasional failures in foreign policy…” (American President: Ronald Wilson Reagan).

In 1987, Reagan visited Berlin, Germany. He spoke out against Communism in a powerful speech: “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” (American President: Ronald Wilson Reagan), of course referring to the Berlin Wall and the obstacles it held for human peace and progression. Now, this wall was not instantly torn down, but two and a half years later, the Berlin Wall became something of the past. This symbolized the fall of Communism in East Germany. As a result of this, the Soviet Union was dissolved in 1991 (Biography of Ronald Reagan), the Cold War also dissolving with it. “The end of the Cold War may be the most oddball chapter in the history of the 20th Century. How fitting, then, that the two most oddball leaders, Gorbachev and Reagan, made it come to pass.” (Kaplan, Ron and Mikhail’s Excellent Adventure).

In conclusion, Reagan was a strong leader, one who knew that the success of a country depends on how hard of a spine its leader has. If it had not been for Reagan with a solid stance on foreign policy, but instead a traditional president, Gorbachev’s radicalism may have been a little more warranted (Kaplan, Ron and Mikhail’s Excellent Adventure). It is from dedication, patriotism, and above all, courage, that Reagan was able to pull the world along with America to “whittle” away at Communism in the Cold War.

Works Cited

American President: Ronald Wilson Reagan. 6 Nov. 2008. Miller Center of Public Affairs. 6 Nov. 2008

Biography of Ronald Reagan. 6 Nov. 2008. The White House. 6 Nov. 2008

Davis, Patti. Ronald Reagan Remembered. 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, Inc., 2004.

Davis, Patti, Dan Rather, et al. The Long Goodbye. New York, NY: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 2004.

Diggens, John Patrick. Ronald Reagan: Fate, Freedom, and the Making of History. 500 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2007.

Doherty, Kieran. Ronald Reagan; Encyclopedia of Presidents. Danbury, CT: Children’s Press, 2005.

Kaplan, Fred. Ron and Mikhail’s Excellent Adventure. “How Reagan won the Cold War”. 6 Nov. 2008. Slate. 6 Nov. 2008

Kengor, Paul. God and Ronald Reagan. 10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers, Inc., 2004.

Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. 2 Nov. 2008. Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation. 6 Nov. 2008

Reagan, Ronald. Ronald Wilson Reagan. 6 Nov. 2008.

Reagan, Ronald. The Reagan Diaries. 10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers, 2007.