Ronald Reagan for President 1976 Campaign Brochure

Ronald Reagan for President 1976 Campaign Brochure

‘Reasons for Reagan:’

Reasons for Reagan:

He'll work to return government to the people.

The federal bureaucracy didn't make America great. The people did. And as the bureaucracy grew larger and more cumbersome -- as government slipped out of the hands of the people -- America became less and less able to cope with its problems.

Ronald Reagan feels strongly that we must reverse the flow of power to Washington -- not just slow it, or cover up the problem with attractive phrases or cosmetic tinkering.

"What I propose," he said recently, "is nothing less than a systematic transfer of authority and resources to the states -- a problem of creative federalism for America's third century. Our country is bursting with ideas and creativity, but a government of bureaucrats has no way to respond. I am calling for an end to giantism, for a return to the human scale -- the scale most human beings can understand and cope with.

"It won't be easy. There will be howls of protest from every carpeted anteroom and chauffered limousine in Washington, but we must turn a deaf ear to them if our nation is to survive."

"I do not for one moment believe that four more years of business-as-usual is the answer to our problems, and I don't think the American people believe it either."

Reasons for Reagan:

He has common sense answers to America's problems.

INFLATION. "The one basic cause of inflation is government spending more than it takes in. When Washington runs in the red, year after year, it cheapens every dollar you earn; it makes a profit on your cost-of-living wage increases by pushing you into higher tax brackets: it borrows in the capital market to cover its deficits, cutting off business and industry from that capital which is needed to fuel our economy and create jobs; it robs your savings of value; and it denies retired people the stability they need and expect for their fixed incomes.

"The cure: a balanced budget. The federal government must set a timetable, a systematic plan, to balance the budget -- and it must stick to it."

UNEMPLOYMENT. "If a recession causes you to lose your job, or makes it hard for you to find one, you need help. Unemployment aid is one way. An expanded job data bank is another -- a computer-linked system to make it possible for you to walk into your local employment office and get information about jobs requiring your skills anywhere in the country. We need to explore other ideas to alleviate problems for those out of work, but the long range solution to unemployment is to bring an end to inflation which, in turn, causes recessions."

WELFARE. "For years there has been a group of people calling for a Federal takeover of welfare. Actually we should do the opposite -- and decentralize welfare.

"If Joe Doaks is using his welfare money to go down to the pool hall and drink beer and gamble, and the people on his block are paying the bill directly, Joe is apt to undergo a change in his lifestyle -- or get off welfare."

SOCIAL SECURITY. "Social Security must be strengthened and improved. The program needs to be reformed. But any reform must have as its first priority the guarantee that all those counting on Social Security will continue to receive their monthly check and that their benefits won't decline in purchasing power, but will keep pace with inflation.

"There are inequities that must be corrected affecting women, people 65-and-over who want to continue to work, and younger workers. But reforms must be made with care so that they don't jeopardize those already retired, those now working, or those who will enter the work force in the future."

ENERGY. "The one thing we shouldn't forget is this. If we relax government controls on natural gas, nuclear plants and domestic Sources of oil, we won't have to worry any longer about being dependent on the Middle East and other oil exporters."

CRIME. "We must remember that the principal reasons for locking up criminals are punishment and isolation -- to keep them from hurting law-abiding citizens, and to serve as a deterrent to others. It does no good to take guns from the law abiding. The most effective gun control is mandatory sentences for those who commit crimes with guns in their possession. When a would-be lawbreaker knows he can kill without facing the ultimate penalty, when he knows that parole or probation may come easy for him, we cannot say we have effective deterrents to increased crime."

DÉTENTE. "Through détente we have sought peace with our adversaries, we should continue to do so, but must make it plain that we expect a stronger indication that they also seek a lasting peace with us. Too often we act as if a concession on our side -- with none by them -- is automatically helpful to the process as a whole. Détente will work only if it is a two-way street something for something."

DEFENSE. "A decade ago we had military superiority. Today, we are in danger of being surpassed by a nation that has never made any effort to hide its hostility to everything we stand for. As a nation, we must commit ourselves to spend whatever is necessary to remain strong. To be second is to be last."

Reasons for Reagan:

He'll be free to do what has to be done.

Today it is difficult to find leaders who are independent of the forces that have brought us our problems -- the Congress, the bureaucracy, the lobbyists, big business and big labor.

If America is to survive and go forward, this must change. And it will change only when the American people vote for a leadership that is not part of the entrenched Washington establishment; leadership that will not be fettered by old commitments and friendships, that will be free to turn to the people for answers instead of to the federal bureaucracy.

Ronald Reagan can provide that kind of leadership, He will be able to make the kind of decisions that a more politically motivated person would be afraid to make. He will let the people decide how much government they want, and then -- with the help of the people -- he will find new approaches to old problems.

Reasons for Reagan:

What he says he'll do...he'll do. He's proved it.

When he was a candidate for governor of California, Ronald Reagan told the people what he would do if he were elected. And what he said he would do...he did.

In spite of a growing population he kept the size of the state government virtually the same. He enlisted the aid of private citizens to help him find solutions to California's problems. He reduced welfare rolls by more than 300,000 -- yet increased benefits to the truly needy by an average of 43%. He obtained substantial tax relief for property owners, renters, and senior citizens. During his administration state support of education increased dramatically, making tax relief at the local level possible. By 1973-74, 45 of California's 58 counties were able to cut their property tax rates -- many for the second year in a row.

Ronald Reagan is a man of integrity who does not say things just because it's politically advantageous. He means what he says. He was that kind of governor. He'll be that kind of President!

He can win in November.

He has run for office twice -- and was twice elected governor of the nation's most populous state. In 1966, he defeated the incumbent Democrat by nearly a million votes. In 1970, he was reelected by a margin of almost 600,000. All this was in a state where Democrats outnumber Republicans better than 3 to 2.