Henry Olsen: Reagan and Trump Blue
Ronald Reagan
Henry Olsen  author of The Working Class Republican: Ronald Reagan and the Return of Blue-Collar Conservatism  discussed the similarities between the  Reagan  and Trump coalitions with SiriusXM host Alex Marlow on Breitbart News Daily.
Marlow asked how  Reagan  came to be seen as a libertarian icon  âbasically the type of guy that just wants to cut taxes on the nine smartest people in the country so that they can save us from ourselves with the lack of government â when in truth he âfought for the dignity of working people and had a huge appeal to blue-collar Americans.â
â Ronald Reagan  talked a lot about freedom. What happened  I think  was that libertarian Koch sort of people  as you put it  latched onto this guy who interpreted them for the masses in their own light â Olsen replied.
âWe tend to forget that one of the Koch brothers ran against  Ronald Reagan  in 1980 because David Koch was a libertarian.  Ronald Reagan  wasnât â  he  pointed out. âBecause  Ronald Reagan  was so staunchly in favor of freedom  they have interpreted  him  in a way that took out all the nuance and all the detail. The fact is that  Ronald Reagan  was somebody who raised taxes to support working people in the dignified pursuit of their own lives.â
Olsen recalled  his  own history with the Republican Party beginning with volunteer work when  he  was just twelve years old. âI was so diehard I went in on the day that Nixon resigned. I worked my way through the party  was a candidate at one point  and I got into  Reagan  because that was what you breathed in California in the 1970s â  he  said.
âBut after 2008  I looked and I saw a Republican Party that was worse off than at any time in my adult lifetime â he continued. âI thought  â Reagan  turned it around. How did  he  do it?â I started studying  him   and thatâs when I learned that everything I knew about  Reagan  was wrong  that  Reagan  turned it around precisely because  he  wasnât the archetypal Ayn Rand libertarian that I had been told  he  was.â
â Ronald Reagan  first and foremost was somebody who put people first â Olsen said. â He  loved the American people.  His  epitaph says it all. Youâll go to Thomas Jeffersonâs grave and youâll see âAuthor of the Virginia Declaration of Rightsâ and âCreator of the University of Virginia.â Well   Ronald Reaganâs  says on  his  last words  is that  he  knows man is good  that right will eventually triumph  and there is purpose and worth to each and every human life. That is the heart of Reaganism.â
â He  believed that freedom was important and essential to that  but  he  also believed that government support was essential to that. Thatâs why  he  supported Social Security  itâs why  he  supported federal aid to help the poor pay medical bills  and itâs why  he  always supported a social safety net â and immigration and trade restrictions  when doing that would help the American worker â Olsen noted.
 He  was critical of modern politicians attempting to appropriate  Reagan âs memory for their own purposes  including Senator Ted Cruz. âNobody quotes  Reagan  more and understands  him  less â Olsen said.
âRegan said that the Republican platform should be âno pale pastels  only bold colors.â Then you read what he actually proposed in that same speech  and it had an energetic support for environmental protection  an energetic support for a real safety net  a very limited attempt to restrict federal spending  no discussion of entitlements.  Ronald Reaganâs  bold colors would be called pale pastels by Ted Cruz â  he  charged.
â Reagan  was so far ahead of the curve that people only turned around the curve decades after  he  had already laid it out â Olsen said.
âThe thing to remember about  Reagan  is that you know  Sylvester Stallone was an out-of-work actor who wrote his vehicle to stardom. He wrote âRocky.â  Ronald Reagan  is the political version of that â  he  explained. â He  wrote  his  own speeches all the way up until really the presidency  and then  he  still had a big hand in  his  speeches.  He  thought through  his  principles.  He  created all the words that made  him  governor and then president.  He  was somebody who created the working class Republican-libertarian alliance that was the  Reagan  coalition  and that Donald Trump is recreating today.â
Olsen said  Reagan  had no difficulty reconciling  his  famed âEleventh Commandmentâ â âThou shalt not speak ill of a fellow Republicanâ â with vigorous primary challenges  such as those seen in the 2018 election cycle.
â He  criticized Gerald Ford  but  he  criticized  his  policies.  He  didnât criticize  his  person.  He  didnât make personal attacks â  he  recalled. âThat was what  Reagan  was really talking about  was that you donât want to drag your opponents through the mud because after the primary youâre going to have more in common than you do with the Democrat. So donât drag somebodyâs character through the mud  but make clear that there are real principled differences between you  and let that be the method of decision for Republicans and people who want to participate in the Republican primary.â
âOne thing also about  Reagan  is that  he  never  throughout  his  career  only limited  his  appeal to Republicans. When  his  career was on the line against Gerald Ford in March 1976   he  goes on national TV as a candidate for the Republican primary and says  âI want Democrats and independents to listen too because youâre part of my coalition ââ Olsen said.
Olsen saw the  Reagan  and Trump coalitions as âmirror images of each other.â
Henry Olsen  author of The Working Class Republican:  [TGT]  and the Return of Blue-Collar Conservatism  discussed the similarities between the  Reagan  and Trump coalitions with SiriusXM host Alex Marlow on Breitbart News Daily.
Marlow asked how   [TGT]   came to be seen as a libertarian icon  âbasically the type of guy that just wants to cut taxes on the nine smartest people in the country so that they can save us from ourselves with the lack of government â when in truth  [TGT]  âfought for the dignity of working people and had a huge appeal to blue-collar Americans.â
 [TGT] talked a lot about freedom. What happened  I think  was that libertarian Koch sort of people  as you put it  latched onto this guy who interpreted them for the masses in their own light â Olsen replied.
âWe tend to forget that one of the Koch brothers ran against   [TGT]   in 1980 because David Koch was a libertarian.   [TGT]   wasnât â   [TGT]   pointed out. âBecause   [TGT]   was so staunchly in favor of freedom  they have interpreted   [TGT]   in a way that took out all the nuance and all the detail. The fact is that   [TGT]   was somebody who raised taxes to support working people in the dignified pursuit of their own lives.â
Olsen recalled   [TGT]   own history with the Republican Party beginning with volunteer work when   [TGT]   was just twelve years old. âI was so diehard I went in on the day that Nixon resigned. I worked my way through the party  was a candidate at one point  and I got into   [TGT]   because that was what you breathed in California in the 1970s â  he  said.
âBut after 2008  I looked and I saw a Republican Party that was worse off than at any time in my adult lifetime â he continued. âI thought  â  [TGT]   turned  [TGT]  around. How did   [TGT]   do it?â I started studying   [TGT]    and thatâs when I learned that everything I knew about   [TGT]   was wrong  that   [TGT]   turned it around precisely because   [TGT]   wasnât the archetypal Ayn Rand libertarian that I had been told  he  was.â
â  [TGT]   first and foremost was somebody who put people first â Olsen said. â  [TGT]   loved the American people.   [TGT]   epitaph says it all. Youâll go to Thomas Jeffersonâs grave and youâll see âAuthor of the Virginia Declaration of Rightsâ and âCreator of the University of Virginia.â Well    [TGT] says on   [TGT]   last words  is that   [TGT]   knows man is good  that right will eventually triumph  and there is purpose and worth to each and every human life. That is the heart of Reaganism.â
â He  believed that freedom was important and essential to that  but  he  also believed that government support was essential to that. Thatâs why  he  supported Social Security  itâs why  he  supported federal aid to help the poor pay medical bills  and itâs why  he  always supported a social safety net â and immigration and trade restrictions  when doing that would help the American worker â Olsen noted.
 He  was critical of modern politicians attempting to appropriate   [TGT]  âs memory for their own purposes  including Senator Ted Cruz. âNobody quotes   [TGT]   more and understands   [TGT]   less â Olsen said.
âRegan said that the Republican platform should be âno pale pastels  only bold colors.â Then you read what  [TGT]  actually proposed in that same speech  and it had an energetic support for environmental protection  an energetic support for a real safety net  a very limited attempt to restrict federal spending  no discussion of entitlements.  Ronald Reaganâs  bold colors would be called pale pastels by Ted Cruz â  he  charged.
â  [TGT]   was so far ahead of the curve that people only turned around the curve decades after  he  had already laid it out â Olsen said.
âThe thing to remember about   [TGT]   is that you know  Sylvester Stallone was an out-of-work actor who wrote his vehicle to stardom. He wrote âRocky.â   [TGT]   is the political version of that â  he  explained. â He  wrote  his  own speeches all the way up until really the presidency  and then  he  still had a big hand in  his  speeches.  He  thought through  his  principles.  He  created all the words that made  him  governor and then president.  He  was somebody who created the working class Republican-libertarian alliance that was the   [TGT]   coalition  and that Donald Trump is recreating today.â
Olsen said   [TGT]   had no difficulty reconciling  his  famed âEleventh Commandmentâ â âThou shalt not speak ill of a fellow Republicanâ â with vigorous primary challenges  such as those seen in the 2018 election cycle.
â He  criticized Gerald Ford  but  he  criticized  his  policies.  He  didnât criticize  his  person.  He  didnât make personal attacks â  he  recalled. âThat was what   [TGT]   was really talking about  was that you donât want to drag your opponents through the mud because after the primary youâre going to have more in common than you do with the Democrat. So donât drag somebodyâs character through the mud  but make clear that there are real principled differences between you  and let that be the method of decision for Republicans and people who want to participate in the Republican primary.â
âOne thing also about   [TGT]   is that  he  never  throughout  his  career  only limited  his  appeal to Republicans. When  his  career was on the line against Gerald Ford in March 1976   he  goes on national TV as a candidate for the Republican primary and says  âI want Democrats and independents to listen too because youâre part of my coalition ââ Olsen said.
Olsen saw the   [TGT]   and Trump coalitions as âmirror images of each other.â