Reagan's Gift

Here we are, 100 years after Ronald Reagan's birth (on Feb. 5) and 30 years after his first birthday as president of the United States, and we really haven't given proper due to the present he gave us. True, the custom normally is for the celebrant to receive the gift, but what Reagan gave us is still giving.

I'm not speaking of hypocrisy; heaven knows there isn't a politician elected who doesn't give a little of that. Reagan's hypocrisy--railing against big government while growing it, lobbying for balanced budgets while never submitting one, decrying taxes while raising them several times--is a little more pronounced than most, but that wasn't the real gift he bequeathed us. Even his hardline statement about not negotiating with terrorists fell by the wayside when he sold arms to Iran in violation of both federal law and an arms embargo, in order to get hostages released in Lebanon.