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.
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