My parents at the RPV Reagan Dinner

 My parents at Saturday's RPV Reagan Dinner.

Mom, Trixie Averill, and Marie Quinn.

Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
2 April 2011

Michael Reagan, keynote speaker at RPV Reagan Dinner

 Michael Reagan, son of President Ronald Reagan, with RPV Chair Pat Mullins.

 Reagan received a standing ovation at the conclusion of his remarks at Saturday's RPV Reagan dinner in Richmond commemorating the 100th anniversary of President Ronald Reagan's birth.

At the conclusion of the program, a line quickly formed as dinner guests patiently waited to see Michael who greeted folks for an hour until every person in line had the opportunity to talk with him.

"It's morning in America." The famous 1984 Reagan for President ad played from the oversized screens at Saturday night's tribute in honor of President Ronald Reagan's 100th birthday as part of a video tribute at an event that featured his son, Michael Reagan, as the keynote speaker.

Close to 600 people watched the screen from the Grand Ballroom at the Marriott in downtown Richmond, some teary-eyed as scenes from throughout the life of this beloved president were shown and highlights from his life were featured: the "Morning in America" television ad, his remarks to a grieving nation after the space shuttle disaster, two presidential elections, his famous "Tear down this wall" speech ... his "long goodbye" to the nation with a "final word to the Reagan revolution" upon learning he had Alzheimer's ... Margaret Thatcher, unable to fly to Reagan's funeral but determined to honor him, sadly remembering him in a recorded eulogy by remarking, "I lost a dear friend."

After the video played, President Reagan's oldest son, Michael, was standing at the podium as every person in the room got to their feet and applauded his father and him. As they sat down, he looked at George Allen sitting at the table directly in front of him and asked, "How's it feel to be the son of an icon?" and added, "I want to thank my dear friends, the Allens."

He talked about Virginia's great leadership and the fact that we "get" it here as far as jobs and the economy and joked, "Want to come help us in California?"

He recalled his father's 1976 speech that few talk about when Gerald Ford received the GOP presidential nomination and, after completing his remarks, asked Reagan to come on the stage and give a few comments. While making their way there, Reagan asked Nancy, "What will I say?" and she replied, "Oh, honey, you'll think of something."

And, indeed, he thought of something to say. He talked about a letter he had been asked to write for a time capsule that was to be opened on America's 300th birthday. He had asked himself, "What do I write? Do I write about today's freedoms knowing those on the 300th birthday may not be able to read the letter if our freedoms are gone?" He shared that story with the 1976 delegates at the convention.

Michael talked about growing up in a privileged world. However, his dad taught him to be a fiscal conservative and he relayed the story of asking his dad for a raise to his allowance when he was nine years old. They were driving to the ranch and during the entire ride his dad explained all the reasons why he didn't need a raise in his allowance. Michael joked that by the time they arrived at the ranch, he was ready to give half his allowance back to his father.

President Reagan's favorite color? Yellow ... because it was the color of the morning sun. He believed in positive television ads and, thus, the "Morning in America" ad. It's time to get back to morning in America ... uplift Americans ... without America, the world would not be free. (My parents who lived through WW II were sitting with me ... my mom whose brother was killed in action and my step-dad who is a veteran.) President Reagan was a coalition builder with his famous 80/20 rule ... "If we agree 80% of the time, we can work together" ... he joked about the 1981 assassination attempt but the experience caused him to became an even deeper man of faith.

Michael introduced the audience to RightChange.com and an ad, "What Would Reagan Do?" dealing with Libya and the striking differences in the way President Reagan handled it and how President Obama handled it. Obama, Michael added, is trying to be a community organizer at a time when the world needs a leader.

When he wrapped up his remarks, the audience gave him another standing ovation as RPV Chairman Pat Mullins walked on stage and thanked him. The dinner concluded and Michael stood at the front of the room for an hour afterward shaking hands, posing for photos, and signing autographs, until every person in line had a chance to talk with him.

The evening was bittersweet as the VCU Final Four game played on large screens and we watched them lose but were proud of their accomplishments.

A pre-dinner message from Governor Bob McDonnell explaining that he was at the VCU game in Houston brought a chuckle from the crowd when he said, "Virginia is for lovers ... of elections."

It was a who's who of Republicans and community leaders and offered the opportunity for all to come together to honor a great President.

Previous posts:
- George & Susan Allen at RPV Reagan dinner
- Richmond, the Governor, and VCU Rams


Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
2 April 2011

Ron Reagan Jr. trounces on father's legacy

I've never understood Ron Reagan's seeming desire to tear down his family throughout the years ... a rebel child who apparently never grew up and certainly never understood the meaning of family loyalty.

He's done it again in a new book that claims his dad had the beginning of Alzheimer's while president although doctors deny that claim, and he goes on to make other claims, as reported by Paul Bedard at Washington Whispers.

It's sad ... this son who carries his father's name doing whatever it takes to sell a book with disregard to his father's memory.

The wisdom of Reagan ...

... and the danger of the current Democratic Party.

"The problem with our liberal friends isn't that they're ignorant. It's that they know so much that isn't so." --President Ronald Reagan

Mark Hemmingway at The Washington Examiner also weighs in....

In the words of Reagan ...

"You can't be for big government, big taxes, and big bureaucracy and still be for the little guy." -- President Ronald Reagan

Ronald Reagan on socialism disguised as health care

Ronald Reagan audio ... health care for America. Amazing message in the words of Ronald Reagan himself. Read the transcript. Amazing. Health care is the path to socialism wrapped up as a humanitarian cause. Beware.

Reagan billboard ... remember real hope and change?

Conservatives in Minnesota are on the ball. An earlier billboard pictured President George W. Bush and asked, "Miss me yet?"

Now Powerline reports another billboard has shown up featuring a photo of a cowboy-hatted Ronald Reagan with the words, "Remember real hope and change?"

Remember the Reagan conservatives? They are still out there....

H/T to Dick

Taxpayers work for federal government

"The taxpayer - that's someone who works for the federal government but doesn't have to take the civil service examination." -- Ronald Reagan

Ronald Reagan ... conservative leadership that is needed today

"Let us be sure that those who come after will say of us in our time, that in our time we did everything that could be done. We finished the race; we kept them free; we kept the faith."
Ronald Reagan, 40th President of the United States (1911-2004)

Reagan: "If we lose freedom here, there's no place to escape to"

"Not too long ago, two friends of mine were talking to a Cuban refugee, a businessman who had escaped from Castro, and in the midst of his story one of my friends turned to the other and said, "We don't know how lucky we are."

And the Cuban stopped and said, "How lucky you are? I had some place to escape to."

And in that sentence he told us the entire story. If we lose freedom here, there's no place to escape to. This is the last stand on earth."

- Ronald Reagan, 45 years ago

H/T to Lyn

Reagan on socialism disguised as health care

Ronald Reagan audio ... health care for America. Amazing message in the words of Ronald Reagan himself. Read the transcript. Amazing. Health care is the path to socialism wrapped up as a humanitarian cause. Beware.

It bears repeating....

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same." -- Ronald Reagan

Family Leadership

"Our leaders must remember that education doesn't begin with some isolated bureaucrat in Washington. It doesn't even begin with state or local officials. Education begins in the home, where it is a parental right and responsibility." - Ronald Reagan, 1982

"Work and family are at the center of our lives, the foundation of our dignity as a free people." - Ronald Reagan, 1980

"When the liberals say 'family,' they mean 'Big Brother in Washington.' When we say 'family,' we mean 'honor thy father and mother.' " - Ronald Reagan, 1988

"All great change in America begins at the dinner table." - Ronald Reagan, 1989

Freedom....

"Freedom is the right to question and change the established way of doing things."

--Ronald Reagan

Remembering to seek God Almighty for enduring strength & wisdom ...

"America needs God more than God needs America. If we ever forget that we are One Nation Under God, then we will be a nation gone under."

-- Ronald Reagan

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction"

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same." -- Ronald Reagan

Michael Reagan: "New Reagan Revolution ... bring conservatism back"

Michael Reagan is upset about last Tuesday's election results ... and he has plans to do something about it. This son of President Ronald Reagan has launched a new website dedicated to bringing the conservative movement back ... ReaganAction.com. In an email to supporters, he sent the following announcement.

The NEW Reagan Revolution ...
Bring Conservatism BACK!
From the Desk of Michael Reagan

Dear Conservative Friend,

It's official: America has its first truly Socialist president... and it's the Republican Party's fault.

No, scratch that -- it's the so-called "leaders" of the GOP who are at fault for this humiliating defeat -- and I say it's time to name names and make heads roll in our party. Because, my fellow conservatives, we have been BETRAYED by the very people who promised that, if we would just elect them, they would get into office and vote OUR conservative values.

THEY LIED... THE GOP DIED.

But we CAN resurrect it -- IF we start TODAY to take action, by both booting out our failed fake-conservative "leadership" AND vowing to FIGHT tooth and nail against the coming tidal wave of destructive, anti-American legislation that's now heading our way... thanks to Obama, Pelosi and Reid.

We CAN fight back -- Join me now in the NEW Reagan Revolution, to bring Conservatism BACK!
As I sit here looking at the election results -- maps, vote tallies, exit polls, state and national results, and much more -- I have to say that, like many of you, I'm in a state of shock.

Not because I'm surprised, mind you -- I warned you that this would happen if the Republican Party nominated John McCain for president.

Yes, I was right... but believe me, that doesn't make me happy. What it makes me... is angry.

Angry at the Democrats, of course. Once again, they ran a campaign full of lies and hate-filled attacks, from Obama's claims that he had "never heard" his racist pastor's anti-American rhetoric over a 20-year period of time, to his claims that his terrorist friend Bill Ayers was "just a guy in the neighborhood," to outright slanderous speech against Governor Sarah Palin... but hey, I expect the Democrats to act that way. It's their nature.

Angry at the "moderate" (meaning liberal) Rockefeller-wing of the Republican Party, who tried to kill the idea of grassroots involvement of hardworking, patriotic, conservative Americans in our party. There's NO grassroots activism when the Rockefeller wing's philosophy prevails; that wing of the party consists of "kingmakers" operating from behind the throne, while the Reagan wing of the party has always lived and thrived at the grassroots, where the real Americans live. When the Rockefeller-wing philosophy prevails, the GOP loses. When the Reagan wing is in control, we win.

Angry with President Bush because he was unwilling to stop Republican Congressional leaders from overspending and because his administration failed to lay the blame for the financial crisis at the feet of Rep. Barney Frank and Senator Chris Dodd that protected Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from reform.

Angry at the so-called "leaders" of our party, who promised us that if we'd just vote for who they put up for election, we'd finally get what we wanted: smaller government, lower taxes, dramatically lower spending, pro-life laws, pro-marriage constitutional amendments, pro-American economics... well, YOU AND I put them in power, and they gave us nothing but BIG GOVERNMENT, BIG DEFICITS, and LIBERAL COMPROMISES.

I say, NO MORE! Join me now in the NEW Reagan Revolution, to bring Conservatism BACK!

As bad as the election results were, I believe there IS "light at the end of the tunnel" -- I believe we now have the opportunity to finally turn out these fake "leaders" that have betrayed conservatism and given us Barack Obama. We have the opportunity to bring back the Reagan wing of the Republican Party, to slow down the socialist legislation from Pelosi and Reid, and to restore this great Republic to its original ideals of basic self-evident truths: our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

This is our chance, friend. It may be our ONLY chance to save our Party -- and it may be our LAST chance to save our country.

Here's what I'm doing to help make that happen: Today, I'm officially launching a new website, ReaganAction.com. This is no wimpy little website with some news articles and a bunch of editorial writers griping about how bad things are. The time for "just talking" is OVER -- now is the time for ACTION!

Every day, we'll give the members of this site -- our own "Reagan Activists" -- the information they need in order to take real grassroots action to counter the greatest political threat we've ever faced within our own government. It won't take a lot of time -- usually only a few minutes a day -- but the political payout will be HUGE!

Here are some of the things that YOU AND I will be able to do at ReaganAction.com:

STOP LIBERAL BILLS -- We can expect an immediate onslaught of extreme liberal bills to be "fast-tracked" through Congress and signed by Obama. We will constantly be on the watch for these bills -- and every time they get introduced, we'll alert our Activists to literally FLOOD Capitol Hill with millions of phone calls, faxes, emails and even hand-delivered letters and petitions, DEMANDING that our elected legislators do what WE say, or else face our wrath at the next election!

FIGHT LIBERAL EXECUTIVE ORDERS -- You can be sure that President Obama (oh, how that phrase terrifies me!) will get right to work on Day One, issuing Executive Orders that will make your skin crawl: repealing pro-life presidential directives, ordering agencies to fund far-left groups like ACORN and the ACLU, signing over American sovereignty to the United Nations and the European Union... he's got a long list! But for every liberal (and usually unconstitutional) Executive Order that Barack Obama issues, we'll alert our Activists to BARRAGE the White House with even MORE phone calls, faxes, emails and even hand-delivered letters and petitions, DEMANDING that he "reverse course" on those Orders or face a Republican Congress in 2010!

EXPOSE LIBERAL CORRUPTION -- With the Democrats back in power in both Congress and the White House, you KNOW that they'll be falling right back into their habits of taking lobbyists' money under the table, trading votes for campaign contributions, spying on and sabotaging Republican legislative plans, covering up their leaders' sexual "flings," and spending taxpayer money on personal expenses like never before. But this time, YOU AND I will be there every step of the way, making sure that no stone is left unturned, every dark corner is filled with light, and every illegal act is paid for with censure, impeachment, recalls, investigations, and jail time for every criminal we expose in Washington, D.C.

COUNTER THE LIBERAL MEDIA -- Whenever any of these things take place, we'll be directing our "Reagan Activists" to constantly fill the news media with letters to the editor, guest editorials, and news articles detailing the socialistic and corrupt policies of the new liberal regime, and offering America a better way -- the way of freedom... the CONSERVATIVE way.

Together, we CAN save America from the new liberal regime! Join me now in the NEW Reagan Revolution, to bring Conservatism BACK!

And don't forget -- I'll also be spreading the word the same way I do already: by writing nationally-syndicated columns each week, and by speaking to over five million listeners each and every weekday on my nationwide radio show!

We MUST do this. Really -- what choice do we have, except to fight back and WIN? As my father, President Ronald Reagan, once said, "We must act today in order to preserve tomorrow."

My father wasn't afraid to call evil what it was -- and neither am I. He defeated the "Evil Empire" called the Soviet Union -- but now we face a new "Evil Empire." It's called Socialism, and it's taken over our once-free nation through the victories of Obama, Pelosi and Reid.

We do NOT have to give up. We do NOT have to slink into some dark corner and lick our wounds. This is OUR MOMENT TO SHINE -- and that's why I'm launching ReaganAction.com!

Like I said before, when the Reagan wing is in control, we win. We don't need kingmakers; we need workers, and until we get them we'll stay the minority party. We don't need to keep the toady liberals who call themselves the "leaders" of the Republican Party; we need conservatives to TAKE BACK the Republican Party, and GET RID OF those losers!

WILL YOU JOIN ME, and hundreds of thousands of your fellow conservative activists nationwide? Let's show these liberals what real REAGAN Republicans can do, when WE'RE in charge of the GOP!

Join me now in the NEW Reagan Revolution, to bring Conservatism BACK!

With Hope in the Future,

Michael Reagan
Chairman
ReaganAction.com

P.S. Already, the new radical regime in Washington, D.C. is planning their first legislative attacks on America:

- Huge increases in payroll and income taxes;
- Redistributionist "share the wealth" policies;
- Repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act;
- Forcing faith-based groups to hire gays;
- Repeal all state regulations on abortion through FOCA;
- Require taxpayer funding of abortion through Medicaid;
- Block all efforts to "Drill Here, Drill Now" in America;
- Impose universal health care through job-killing employer mandates;
- Appoint activists liberal Supreme Court judges;
- Kill conservative talk radio by re-instituting the "Fairness Doctrine";
- Require comprehensive sex education from the earliest grades in public schools;
- Enforce bilingual education in the public schools;
- Allow convicted felons to vote;
- Take secret ballot voting away from workers deciding on whether to unionize...
- The list goes on and on and on...

And it's up to YOU AND I to stop them! Don't let the door slam shut on this opportunity to make a difference...

Join me now in the NEW Reagan Revolution, to bring Conservatism BACK!

Thank you.

Reaganism is not dead

Rush Limbaugh reported on a Scott Rasmussen poll that proved Reaganism is not dead. From RushLimbaugh.com:

RUSH: Scott Rasmussen has an op-ed piece today in the Wall Street Journal, and it confirms my instincts and it confirms what we've also learned from exit polling. " 'The Polls Show That Reaganism is Not Dead.' -- Down the campaign homestretch, Mr. Obama's tax-cutting promise became his clearest policy position. Eventually he stole the tax issue from the Republicans. Heading into the election, 31% of voters thought that a President Obama would cut their taxes. Only 11% expected a tax cut from a McCain administration. The last Democratic candidate to win the tax issue was also the last Democratic president -- Bill Clinton. In fact, the candidate who most credibly promises the lowest level of taxes has won every presidential election in at least the last 40 years."

Now, here's the thing. We have brewing problems on the right because so many of our so-called intelligentsia are totally misreading the reason for this loss, for this defeat. They're wanting to throw in the towel and become liberal light. The fact is Reaganism hasn't been tried in 20 years. They want to say that the era of Reagan is over.

Rasmussen himself says the polls show that Reaganism is not dead, the Democrats have stolen it. This gives you an idea of just how hapless the Republican Party has become. Now, I know a lot of you are saying, "But Rush, but Rush, McCain was talking tax cuts, and --" He wasn't using numbers! People's attention span is people's attention span. As far as most people that voted believe or are concerned, Obama is going to cut taxes for 95% of Americans. We're running around saying, "Well, that's okay, but 95% don't pay taxes." It doesn't register. Ninety-five percent versus whatever McCain was saying one day and then the next day, and the next day. There was no consistency in the message.

But losing the tax cut issue and then thinking conservatism is dead when Obama, one of the reasons he gets elected is because he's perceived as the number one tax cutter of the two candidates. I mean is that incompetence or ineptness on our side or what? To lose it to a socialist! To lose the tax cut argument to a socialist. Now, if he follows through and starts raising taxes on people, then there's going to be a little hell to pay because people do think that Obama was a tax cutter, and not just raising taxes on the rich. Ninety-five percent of Americans are going to get a tax cut and we'll see how he manages to pull this off. He can do that. He can create the illusion of that with the redistribution of wealth, spreading it around.

Election 2008 is but a bump in the road. New conservative leaders will rise from the ashes of this election.

Reagan: "How do you tell a communist?"

"How do you tell a communist? Well, it's someone who reads Marx and Lenin. And how do you tell an anti-Communist? It's someone who understands Marx and Lenin."

--President Ronald Reagan

Ronald Wilson Reagan ... 1911 - June 5, 2004

"Let us be sure that those who come after will say of us in our time, that in our time we did everything that could be done. We finished the race; we kept them free; we kept the faith."

--Ronald Reagan
40th President of the United States