1/11 【美国历史上的今天】里根最为自豪的政治遗产，都包括了什么？

美国历史上的今天

里根的政治遗产

每天一篇《美国历史上的今天》，提炼和总结历史在今天发生的重要事件：谁，在哪里，什么时候，做了什么，这件事为什么重要、以及在写关于什么主题的论文的时候可以作为潜在论据引用。

每天半分钟，轻松积累史实

为AP历史拿5分打下坚实基础

When: Jan 11, 1989

What: President Ronald Reagan gave his farewell address, after serving as the U.S. president for 8 years.

Why significant: In his speech, President Ronald Reagan spoke enthusiastically about his achievements in foreign policy, which he enumerated to include:

  • achieving peace in the Persian Gulf

  • forcing the Soviets to leave from Afghanistan

  • negotiating for the withdrawal of Vietnamese troops from Cambodia

  • mediating the withdrawal of Cuban forces from Angola

These efforts were all waged against communism, which Reagan believed was the main threat to freedom.

However, Reagan’s Cold War record was not as straightforwardly successful as he described. The U.S.'s “strength” was renewed at the expense of drastically increased defense expenditure, which resulted in over one trillion dollars national debt. Peace in the Persian Gulf was only temporary, as the Gulf War later erupted during George Bush's administration. Finally, the means he employed to achieve anti-communism ends were often questionable, as revealed by the Iran-Contra scandal, in which the Reagan administration covertly sold weapons to Iran and illegally supplied the Contra forces in Nicaragua.

Nonetheless, Reagan's administration still gained much favor with the American public with its foreign policies and tax cut. Reagan left office as one of the most popular modern U.S. presidents.

Tags: Cold War, Ronald Reagan

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