By Rieley McDonnell, Newswire Intern
Ronald Reagan really ruined everything.
He ruined things in many ways — most know him for his failures in “Reaganomics” or the Iran-Contra Affair — but his more egregious offense was the ties that he strengthened between the Republican Party and evangelicals.
Certain evangelical leaders like Jerry Falwell Sr., were looking to influence American politics. These leaders decided to form the “Christian Right,” or the “Moral Majority” and chose the GOP as the party they would try to mold into their image. They believed Reagan was their ticket to influence.
They were right — he was. He welcomed the religious right into his fold gladly.
Now, Reagan was not the perfect candidate, but he was the one with the most viable path to the presidency. Reagan had made some mistakes in the eyes of evangelicals, such as being divorced, but they could forgive that if they were able to get power from his rising status.
One notable instance of interaction between Reagan and the evangelical base he was courting was at Liberty University. Liberty University president Jerry Falwell Sr. was one of the leading forces trying to bring religion into politics. This university had a huge voting demographic of college students, so it was important that Reagan made a good impression there.
And make a good impression he did. “Now, I know this is a non-partisan gathering, and so I know that you can’t endorse me, but I only brought that up because I want you to know that I endorse you,” he said. This statement helped Reagan get the support of the very important demographic of college students.
Reagan also began expressing support for many evangelical doctrines. He advocated for “voluntary” prayer in schools, saying that God had a place in the classroom. Reagan also supported anti-abortion policies, saying that he would appoint judges who “respect traditional family values,” suggesting that gay rights and abortion rights were not worthwhile values to be upheld. He also voiced support for private Christian academies.
Christian academies grew in greater numbers after the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision. These schools were often referred to as segregation academies. They came from the disdain that certain individuals had for integrating public schools.
Reagan won the election with his endorsements and because of Jimmy Carter’s unpopularity. This was, in part, because of the support of the evangelicals. The “Moral Majority” could now claim that they made evangelicals one of the most important voting blocs in the country.
While in office, Reagan gained the support of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), the largest denomination of evangelicals in the country, which was needed if Reagan wanted to cement ties with the evangelical community. People with the SBC generally had begun leaning more Republican over the mid-1900s.
The alliance between the SBC and Reagan was solidified when Vice President George Bush gave the closing remarks at the 1982 SBC convention. He told the people there that he believed the separation of church and state should not keep church leaders from interacting in the political sphere.
Trump and Reagan both valued the political opinions of evangelicals in their campaigns, leading them to presidential victory.
The wall between the separation of church and state was slowly falling as the religious right gradually made its way into politics. Reagan can be blamed for allowing these people to gain seats of prominence within national and state politics. These ruinations made by Reagan can be felt today. Reagan can be blamed, in part, for the rise of Donald J. Trump.
Donald Trump knew the importance of keeping evangelicals on his side, just like Ronald Reagan saw the importance of getting them on his. Trump appealed to evangelicals in some of the same ways as Reagan, especially with his anti-abortion stance. He even helped propel the overturn of Roe v. Wade with his SCOTUS picks — something Reagan would have loved.
Another key point Trump took from Reagan was his well-known slogan, Make America Great Again (MAGA), which was taken straight from Reagan. Trump’s economic ideas eerily mirror Reagan’s Reaganomics.
Not only did Reagan ruin everything by allowing religion to mesh into American politics, but he also ruined this country post-mortem by laying the groundwork for Donald Trump to become president.