Assessing Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan, the 40th president of the United States, has been described as having had a very engaging personality. Even people who disagreed with his policies, found themselves drawn to his attractive and carefully honed public image. Surrounded by tough, energetic administrators who insulated him from many of the pressures of the office, he seemed to offer general guidance but not make specific decisions. His presidency was also mired in a series of scandals, but the most damaging was the Iran-contra scandal. After a series of investigations and congressional hearings, the White House conceded that it had sold weapons to the revolutionary government in Iran, and used some of the money to illegally aid the Contras in Nicaragua. This was in direct violation of the Boland Amendment.
Answer the following question
Should Reagan (or the policies of any past presidents) be credited with the collapse of world communism, or was the end of the Cold War more a result of internal developments within the Soviet Union and the nations it dominated?
Sample Answer
Ronald Reagan’s role in the collapse of world communism is a complex and controversial issue. Some historians argue that Reagan’s policies, such as the Strategic Defense Initiative and the support for the Contras in Nicaragua, played a significant role in the collapse of the Soviet Union. Others argue that the collapse of the Soviet Union was more a result of internal developments within the Soviet Union, such as economic stagnation and political corruption.
There is no doubt that Reagan’s policies were tough on the Soviet Union. The Strategic Defense Initiative, also known as “Star Wars,” was a proposed space-based missile defense system that would have made it much more difficult for the Soviet Union to launch a nuclear attack on the United States. The support for the Contras was an attempt to overthrow the left-wing Sandinista government in Nicaragua, which was supported by the Soviet Union.