Ronald Reagan was the 40th president of the US. But he was famous even before becoming the president, not as a politician, but as a movie star. Reagan had been a movie and television actor for years and moved to politics much later.
Reagan became the president at the age of 69. In fact, he was the oldest first-term US president. He held this distinction until 2017, when Donald Trump became president at age 70. Reagan is also the only movie actor ever to become president. He was a skilled orator and was known as the Great Communicator.
In 1966, Reagan became the governor of California. In 1980, Reagan won the Republican presidential nomination defeating Jimmy Carter. Reagan’s term in office began with cheerful news about the release of the hostages in Iran. Though all the work for this was done by his predecessor Carter, the incident set a positive tone for his tenure.
Though he was shot and wounded by a would-be assassin 69 days after swearing in, he recovered quickly and resumed duties. This incident increased his popularity; Reagan did not forget to maintain his grace and wit during the dangerous incident. During his tenure, Reagan obtained legislation to stimulate economic growth, increase employment, and strengthen national defence. He lowered taxes for the wealthy; Reagan thought if the rich spent more money; it would help all levels of the economy.
Reagan was concerned about keeping America safe during the Cold War and spent a lot on weapons. He was elected for a second term. This time, he made efforts to smoothen the relationship with Russia. He left office in January 1989. Reagan disclosed in November 1994 that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease earlier that year. He died at home in 2004.
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