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William F. Buckley, Jr. remembers Ronald Reagan -- and chronicles their decades-long friendship
The Reagan I Knew
by William F. Buckley, Jr.
It is fitting, perhaps, that when William F. Buckley
Jr. was struck down at his desk in February 2008 he was
putting the finishing touches on this memoir of Ronald
Reagan. No two men were more important to the rise and
triumph of conservatism in America than Buckley and Reagan;
and though each was a titan in his own right, neither could
have stood as tall without the other. Each, too, had a
great capacity for humor, conversation, and most of all
lasting and loyal friendship. The Reagan I Knew, then, is
much more than a memoir, more than a political biography --
it is a highly personal, often hilarious, and finally
deeply moving chronicle of the friendship between the two
great figures of the modern American Right.
(continued from above)
"This book is about Ronald Reagan," writes Buckley in
his Prologue. "The public Reagan, obviously, but almost
always, in this book, simply the Ronald Reagan I came to
know. Except that he was a great public figure who moved
mountains, there would be scant curiosity about him. But he
became, for a while, the most prominent politician on
earth. I would not, otherwise, be undertaking a book about
him. However, this book is one in which the large scale of
things is quite intentionally diminished or, better,
maneuvered around, to make way for the cultivation of
personal curiosity about someone who became a good friend."
Tracing the arc of Reagan's political career through
the prism of Buckley's contacts with him, The Reagan I Knew
reveals:
- How Buckley and Reagan met while Reagan was still a
Democrat, and Buckley an already-renowned conservative
commentator, a phenomenon of the new right
- How, in the years after this first encounter, as Reagan's
own star rose, his political philosophy crystallized and
his embrace of the conservative outlook became as
complete as one can expect from a public leader
- Why, although Reagan was never a theorist within the
conservative movement, he did become the greatest
expositor of the conservative cause in American politics
- Reagan's political intuition: superior to the
sophisticates', both liberal and conservative
- How Reagan shied from drawing back the curtain on his
private life -- the intimate glimpses we get here may
surprise even his most knowledgeable admirers
- Reproduced in full: Buckley's compelling speech,
delivered in Reagan's presence, about confronting the
Soviet Union in the nuclear age
- If, in the end, it had come to that, would Reagan
actually have launched missiles against the Soviets?
- Buckley's fictional (but well-founded on actual
knowledge) conversation between Clare Boothe Luce and
Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger, intended to reveal
Reagan's thinking on nuclear weapons
- Buckley on Reaganomics: a reconstruction of some of the
most significant debates over the taxes, spending, and
the size and scope of government
- Reagan promised to cut the size of government, yet the
budget deficit nearly doubled during his tenure. Was this
an overt submission to increased government, or a
capitulation to forces he could not control? Buckley
sorts out difficulties and criticisms
- The drama over David Stockman, Reagan's young and
controversial budget director -- and the advice Reagan
received from Buckley himself on handling the situation
- Excerpts from the 1967 Firing Line episode in which
Buckley and Reagan carefully parse the vital issue of
federalism in Great Society America -- and where Reagan
displays his instinctive grasp of the American character
and winning style of humor
- "The nicest man who ever occupied the White House": how,
whether he was charming his listeners with stories,
coming up with a wisecrack, or gracefully recovering
after the attempt on his life, the private Reagan was
almost always sunny and positive
- Reagan's unalterable confidence in the virtue of the
American character -- big-hearted and open, hard-working
and determined
- Reagan's relations with his family: though he was
invariably a loyal friend and loving husband, we also see
an overwhelmed and, at times, aloof father
- Buckley's own role as a close Reagan family friend and
counselor -- as revealed in his correspondence with Patti
while she was at boarding school, and from Ron Jr.'s
visits with the Buckleys in Connecticut and New York
- Buckley and Nancy Reagan: a selection of letters from
their correspondence shows the immense enjoyment they
both took from their friendship
- "Mr. Reagan has accomplished a great deal, but perhaps he
will be remembered by our great-grandchildren for two
reasons. . ."
The analysis of Reagan's basic positions and policies
falls under three thematic headings: foreign policy
(nuclear deterrence vis-à-vis the Soviet Union), the
economy (and bloated federal government), and federalism
(the issue of states' rights, or separation of powers, as
Buckley often preferred to phrase it). Thus the leading
issues of the day are limned through an account of the
friendship of "Bill" and "Ron" over nearly three decades.
William F. Buckley Jr. knew Ronald Reagan perhaps
better than anyone outside his family. The Reagan I Knew is
the most personally and politically revealing portrait of
Ronald Reagan the world is likely to have.
Click here to submit a review
 Steven Gross
This is the first of Mr. Buckley's books that I have read and thoroughly enjoyed it. The book gave much insight too Mr. and Mrs Regan and the leading commentary framed the time period perfectly for me. For anyone that is a fan President Regan I think this is a must read.
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