First speech of nomination of Ronald Reagan as a president of the United States

The first speech of nomination of Ronald Reagan as a president of the United States of America is the speech of nomination which pronounced Ronald Reagan as a President of the United States of America at the time of the Inauguration Day, the January 20th 1981. This intervention which concentrates on the economic aspect of the American Crise expresses its will to control the action of the Federal government before underlining the capacity of the Americans to be believed in themselves.

Context

January 20th, 1981, it rains on Washington, just like it had rained the November 5th 1980 the shortly after the triumphal election, in spite of the Abstention, of the republican candidate Ronald Reagan to the presidency of the United States.

For a few months, the country has gone badly. The Inflation reaches 13,5%, the number of unemployed exceeds the 6 million, the Budget seems into permanent deficit and the Oil price more than quadrupled. On the international scene, the country was unable to prevent the invasion of Afghanistan by the Soviet Armée. Sanction symbolic system with the Outgoing president, Jimmy Carter, the release of the Otage S of the embassy of Teheran takes place in addition only the very same day Investiture of its political opponent.

Contents

In its inaugural address, old the Gouverneur of formerly democratic California chooses to concentrate only on the economic aspect of the American crisis by veiling its provisions from now on ultraconservatrices on social matters and its diplomatic inclinations since always strongly anticommunists.

The socio-economic denunciation of an hegemonic government

The report of the responsibility for the government in the economic crisis

The first marked paragraphs of the text are impressed of some Catastrophisme. They draw up the portrait of an economy hyperinflationnist where the depreciation of the Monnaie is such as the Ménage S cannot rationally choose saving R and is thus constrained to be devoted to a dangerous short-term management of their Revenu S. is in addition evoked a Chômage extremely. Reagan thus describes a situation all the more difficult to exceed that a whole tradition of the economic theory presented inflation and unemployment like two phenomena necessarily inversely proportional following Philips.

According to Reagan, it is however not as well such a degraded economic situation, since marked by the double Oil crisis and wild the commercial Concurrence Japan ease, as an ineffective consecutive management of the federal government which explains the crisis. While wanting to mitigate an alleged lack of initiative of the Civil society, this one indeed increased in manner criticizes the public expenditure, which made necessary an increase in the tax Ponction, all the more detrimental for the nation's economy which it penalizes of the impoverished populations already and which it is in spite of very insufficient ensuring a balance in the budget. There is thus Endettement. However, Reagan contemplates with sympathy the proposal of Thomas Jefferson according to which the accumulated national debts owe every twenty years systematically since no Génération has the right to engage the responsibility for its succession.

The consecutive clause of a control of the administration

Nearer to the ideals of the republican old party than knew Thomas Jefferson, anti-federalist, than of those of the new Republican party which knew Abraham Lincoln, attached to the intervention of the State in the economy, the program of Ronald Reagan is consequently rather simple, it acts to cut down in a drastic way the public expenditure not corresponding to the exercise of the missions Régalien born entrusted by the Constitution by the United States of America at the federal government. In other words, it is a question of reducing all the expenditure except for those of the armed , which is seen allotting an enormous budget under the terms of the fight programmed by the new President against what he calls the “ Empire of the Evil ”, the Soviet Union.

Besides in particular, he proposes to freeze the recruiting of the Fonctionnaire S or to continue more before the policy of Déréglementation committed under the administration of Jimmy Carter, who had released the Air transport and railway, this logic of deregulation having to be thorough at a point such as she will encourage the constitution of Monopole S in spite of the tradition Anti-trust, with for justification the necessary strength to the ambition of the foreign firms. Once the effective reduction in the expenditure, the economy could be started again by a reduction of extremely logical taxation, the administration having from now on a less financing need. In the facts, this control of the Tax pressure is however contradictory with the extravagant military policy that Reagan considers. Still candidate with the republican nomination in 1980, George Bush underlined as of this date such a contradiction by calling the program of his adversary of then “ economy Vaudou E ”.

In fact of voodoo, it is about a new liberalism monetarist inspired by what one calls the “ Supply-side economics ”, which has as a leader Arthur Laffer and the future Nobel Prize Milton Friedman, and which was then never put to the test in an industrialized country. This Néolibéralisme takes again the Loi of the outlets of Jean-Baptiste Say to try to show that since the offer creates the request and thus the growth, to support the request, it is to support a recession. In fact, any policy interventionist of the type of that carried out by Franklin Delano Roosevelt or Lyndon Baines Johnson would be a bad policy. The proof made by Laffer that “ too much tax kills the tax ”, because of tax evasion but especially of the escape in front of work, would confirm that to be modern the State must remain modest.

Setting in scene

The dramatic symbolization of the presidential intervention

Reagan obtained with the elections 51% votes cast, whereas Jimmy Carter Outgoing president and the independent candidate John Anderson collect respectively only 41 and 7% of them, that is to say less together than the Republican alone. The new one occupying of the White House enjoys in addition a very new majority with the Sénat and can count on dissenting democrats called “ the anthonomists ” to form with the Chambre of the Representatives a preserving Coalition. In spite of this historical victory, it seems that Reagan is not fully satisfied and tries in its speech to consolidate its legitimacy of new elected official of the people. With this intention, it will use of the Symbole to put itself in scene as the Acteur which he was formerly.

Initially, the very same day where it is invested and makes thus the speech, his wife is vêtue of a scarlet Rouge which is supposed to point out the American Drapeau jointly with the woman of the vice-president Barbara Bush which on its side chose the Bleu. Then and especially, Ronald Reagan decided to not lend oath, like her predecessors, in front of the frontage of the Capitole, which turns the back on the city, but on other side of the building, which profits from a more imposing prospect and telegenic. There are the monuments dedicated to famous the Founding fathers of the American nation. It under their glance that is held thus the ceremony, is orchestrated like a Spectacle, where the concern of rendering comprehensible themselves and of liking is paramount. Reagan repeats several times that he does not want that it there has misunderstanding, misuses witty remarks and employs striking formulas in Chiasme to save a tiresome argumentation. Reagan is well this “ Grand Communicator ” which seeks to support its popularity while calling with the popular Mythe. The day before, Frank Sinatra animated the gala evening.

The recourse to the political myths for a tightening of the national bond

From now on equipped with a power symbolic system, the presidential intervention is completed on considerations on the American nation that the economic crisis makes according to him heroic. The President evokes the Sacrifice armed with young soldiers having taken part in the battles in France during the Great War, in the maritime conflicts of the Pacifique South-western during the Second world war or in the Guerre of Vietnam. There it is a question of taking again in a diverted way the call launched formerly by President Kennedy, with which he compared himself several times during the countryside, at least with regard to the international policy, call which corresponds perfectly to the idea of an alarm clock of the private sphere advanced higher: “ you do not ask what the government can do for you, you ask what you can do for the government ”. The idea of the necessary sacrifice of the American people to the defense of the Liberté which is subjacent here is made bearable in addition by that which affirms that these people are a Peuple elected of God and that it has in fact a “ Destinée proclamation ”, idea stated in particular with the penultimate sentence, which introduces the American like an individual able all to carry out if it with the Ambition necessary.

This idealization of the sacrifice finally returns to the idea of the existence of a Scapegoat in addition being used for tightening of the national bond, national bond which with the crisis and which broke should be restored. Thus, Reagan is obviously the defender of some Patriotisme, and this is why it systematically employs the second person plural in his address: in addition to doing to echo to the Constitution with “ Us, the people ”, it builds by the language the solidarity which it intends to set up between the people of modest means. Such solidarity is not founded on the Social security or the direct mutual aid but on resistance common vis-a-vis to the claims of the Federal state and on the shared pleasure of an individual freedom continuing against the administrative Bureaucratie . It must reach a certain number of professional categories a long time forgotten their compatriots whom the President evokes and who he intends to defend by proposing itself like proof of their capacity. Before succeeding in the policy, he was born commercial parents in the Illinois, was swimming teacher rescuer, deferring sporting to the radio, chair Guilde of the actors of Hollywood, lecturer with the General Electric, etc

Assessment

That which one called Splendid the “ Reagan” made the promise with its people which America would be “ of return ”. Noting the failure of the federal economic policy, it uses of its Popularité, increased soon by the attempt at Assassinat of which it is victim the March 30th, to impose the idea to him that it is itself as plain and elected people of God who will authorize this return if it is put at the Travail and finds his quiet Foi. Reagan wants “ to tear off the country with the Blues which haunted it ” and to make it act in the Confiance found. Its Mandat S will thus be characterized by a constant reinforcement of the preserving religious movements, and in particular of the moral Majorité of the reverend Jerry Falwell, a Télévangéliste. Of this, it is not so much question in the text. It should be said that this speech also tries to transmit a message traditionally sent by very new elected official to his voters and to the other voters: “ I will be the elected official of all ”.

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