The Great Presidents by Thomas Miller

Author:Thomas Miller
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: MG Publishing
Published: 2021-01-03T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 8: Reagan’s Legacy

Ronald Reagan was first married to Jane Wyman in 1940, but the marriage was troubled the entire time and they got a divorce in 1949. His second marriage was to Nancy Davis in 1952. He was with her till his death from Alzheimer’s in 2004. Ronald and Nancy had two children, Patricia Ann Reagan, and Ronald Prescott Reagan although he had two children from his previous marriage to Jane Wyman.

Ronald and Nancy’s marriage was almost idyllic. Biographers always commented on how intimate the two were. The same cannot be said, however, of Nancy’s relationship with her children. For several years at a time she was estranged from each of her children, and this eventually formed the bulk of what she wrote in her memoir, My Turn. She did manage to get them all together finally. From the time of Ronald’s diagnosis to his eventual death, the children were always around, lending the much-needed help and support all the way.

Ronald Reagan was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in the 1990s, and he eventually died from the disease. His son, Ron, speculated in his memoir that his father had started suffering the symptoms even while he was still in office. This view has never been substantiated and caused no small controversy at that time. Ronald deteriorated from the disease quickly, and during his final days, Nancy allowed the only close family to see him.

He has been the recipient of various awards, many of which even came after his demise. Several years after his death, the United States postal service issued a postal stamp that was named after him.

It is heavily rumored that his father’s alcoholism had a profound effect on him, to the extent of affecting his personal philosophies even as president. He was often touted as being reticent about his past, and that his stance on the plight of the poor was also influenced by this.

Robert E. Gilbert, a professor of political science, explored this topic further an article about the effects of alcohol abuse on children, and how it related to Ronald Reagan’s life. Although Reagan was considered to be funny and charming, he was never really known beyond the surface level. In fact, his biographer said that it was extremely difficult to get Reagan to open up and be introspective. To those who knew him, Reagan could be distant, quiet, and sometimes hard to understand. He didn’t make friends easily and his wife, Nancy, filled the roles of friend and wife. Children of alcoholics have a hard time sharing pieces of themselves, and opening up to others. If a child can’t rely on their parents for safety and trust, as they grow older, it’s hard for them to seek safety and trust in others. Gilbert suggests that Reagan demonstrated this in his lack of close friendships, and the difficulty he had in expressing anything deep or personal to him.

Gilbert argues that the alcoholism of his father, changed Reagan’s personality to one of a delegator, among other personality changes.

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