"I will not stand by and watch this great country destroy itself under mediocre leadership that drifts from one crisis to the next, eroding our national will and purpose. We have come together here because the American people deserve better from those to whom they entrust our nation's highest offices, and we stand united in our resolve to do something about it."

These words were spoken by candidate Ronald Reagan in 1980 when he accepted the GOP nomination for President.  They are even more true today than in 1980.  We can hope candidate Sarah Palin will deliver similar words in 2012 accepting the GOP nomination on the way to victory over Obama:

Never before in our history have Americans been called upon to face three grave threats to our very existence, any one of which could destroy us. We face a disintegrating economy, a weakened defense and an energy policy based on the sharing of scarcity.

The major issue of this campaign is the direct political, personal and moral responsibility of Democratic Party leadership –i n the White House and in Congress — for this unprecedented calamity which has befallen us. They tell us they have done the most that humanly could be done. They say that the United States has had its day in the sun; that our nation has passed its zenith. They expect you to tell your children that the American people no longer have the will to cope with their problems; that the future will be one of sacrifice and few opportunities.

My fellow citizens, I utterly reject that view. The American people, the most generous on earth, who created the highest standard of living, are not going to accept the notion that we can only make a better world for others by moving backwards ourselves. Those who believe we can have no business leading the nation.

I will not stand by and watch this great country destroy itself under mediocre leadership that drifts from one crisis to the next, eroding our national will and purpose. We have come together here because the American people deserve better from those to whom they entrust our nation’s highest offices, and we stand united in our resolve to do something about it. (And did he ever!)

In 1980 Ronald Reagan won the Presidential Nomination and addressed the nation in a memorable convention speech which you can access below.

A landmark event in the history of conservatism and our nation took place thirty years ago this week. In 1980 Ronald Reagan won the Presidential Nomination and addressed the nation in a memorable convention speech which you can access below.

It’s hard for some to imagine three decades have passed since this thrilling event. It was a triumph for a great man, who proved great leader, but also for the grassroots conservative movement in America. The national news media, which consisted then of CBS, NBC & ABC, did their best to belittle the event but Ronald Reagan was able to touch the nation with his speech and prayer without the filter of liberal network news anchors.

Despite his eventual landslide victory over President Jimmy Carter the outcome of that election was close up until three days before the nation voted. During the campaign the media helped Carter make the case Reagan was a ‘racist’, was not intelligent enough to be President, would start a war with the Soviet Union and would destroy ‘social programs’.

For our younger readers this must all sound familiar. Aside from the now dead Soviet Union which Reagan defeated, the media and the radical left wing makes all the same arguments. Fortunately Ronald Reagan shamed Jimmy Carter into finally having one debate three days before the election. Reagan creamed Carter and the voters shifted massively in Reagan’s favor. And the rest, thankfully, is history. Take some time over the weekend and enjoy Ronald Reagan’s convention speech delivered thirty years ago.

Reagan National Airport, Washington, DC

A statue of President Ronald Reagan is slated to be in place by the Fall of 2011 at Reagan National Airport just across the Potomac from Washington DC.

The  Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation has inked a deal with the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, which operates Reagan National and Dulles International Airport, to install the bronze statue of Reagan on a triangle of land in front of Terminal A at the airport.

This statue is part of the national and international plans in place by the United States government and scores of private organizations and businesses to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of Ronald  Reagan’s birth next year.

Congress changed the name of the airport to honor Reagan in 1998.  There was some minor protest by the liberal media at the time but it amounted to nothing but sour grapes.  During one of the first flights into the newly named airport passengers on the aircraft broke into spontaneous applause when they were told they were on final approach to ‘Ronald Reagan’ National Airport.

Up until now, aside from the name on entrance signage and subway maps there is little at the airport to officially recognize President Reagan. This new statue will engender generations of recognition for one of the nation’s most important Presidents and the man credited by Eastern Europeans who outsmarted the Soviets and brought them into the light of liberty.  We’ll keep you posted as statue design and details are released.

Ronald Reagan’s home state of Illinois has a wide variety of events planned and recently launched an informative website we feel you will enjoy.  This includes a June Ronald Reagan Day at Wrigley Field in Chicago.  You can find the link to their site, along with other worthy political sites, in the right hand column of ReagantoPalin.com or by clicking on the link here>REAGAN ILLINOIS CENTENNIAL

One of Sarah’s strengths today is that she speaks in conversational and extemporaneous tones. She is ‘one of us’ in other words…just like a next door neighbor. Right now this serves her well and no doubt Governor Palin understands she’ll need more tightly drawn speeches once a national Presidential campaign is underway.

Sarah Palin hit a rhetorical speed bump last week when she misplaced the geographical location of Ronald Reagan’s Alma Mater, Eureka College in Illinois.

As usual the media has had a field day with this though they never  feel compelled to print anything else she said in her speech about the dangers of the Obama Administration.

One of Sarah’s strengths today is that she speaks in conversational and extemporaneous tones.  She is ‘one of us’ in other words…just like a next door neighbor.  Right now this serves her well and no doubt  Governor Palin understands she’ll need more tightly drawn speeches once a national Presidential campaign is underway.

However, let’s get back to Eureka College for just a moment.  One of  Ronald Reagan’s greatest human traits was an ability to graciously laugh at himself and therefore not take himself too seriously.  The wonderful film clip below from 1974 does in fact end with a joke about Eureka College.

It remains a disgusting spectacle the media will allow Obama to say things daily which are not accurate and yet never submit him to ‘fact checking’.  His everyday speeches, performed it seems only to gratify his ego, are rife with error.  Yet, the liberal media lets him move along with rarely a discouraging word.  President Obama, as we know, is thin skinned and takes his self-belief in personal greatness way too seriously.

Thankfully Ronald Reagan and Sarah Palin are like most Americans who understand the value of self-deprecation while they seek to lift others.  Please enjoy the video and note the ending joke about Eureka College.  (For those of a younger generation, comedian Jonathan Winters mentions riding a bus with legendary movie and TV actor Fred MacMurray.  In those days the popular MacMurray made TV commercials for the Greyhound Bus Company.)

President & Mrs. Reagan

President Reagan reminded the nation that the greatest threat to freedom comes from ‘within’ the nation more so than an enemy abroad.

He could have spoken these words about America in 2010.  Never have we had a President, in Obama, and an Administration filled with elite radicals so ignorant of the majesty of freedom and free enterprise which built this nation.

President Reagan made these remarks on July 4th 1986 aboard the aircraft carrier USS JOHN F. KENNEDY in New York harbor.  Behind him, and First Lady Nancy Reagan, is the newly restored and relighted Statue of Liberty.  As always, Reagan’s words and message are timeless.

President Eisenhower once said: "Informed citizens are the guardian and spirit of democracy." We agree.

President Eisenhower once said:  “Informed citizens are the guardian and spirit of democracy.”  We agree.  To win the battle of ideas we must all be informed voters not swayed by false rhetoric and rumor.  We hope these selected articles serve just such a purpose:

OBAMA’s FAILURE OF AN IMMIGRATION SPEECH

OBAMA SPEECH FANS IMMIGRATION FIGHT

TEA PARTY WILL DIE OUT SAYS SEN. LINDSAY GRAHAM

DIM BULB PELOSI BELIEVES UN-EMPLOYMENT CHECKS CREATE JOBS

OBAMA’s ECONOMY IS A FAILURE

RADICAL LIBERAL HISTORIANS RATE OBAMA & CLINTON AS BETTER PRESIDENTS THAN REAGAN

WHY IS THE GULF CLEAN-UP SO SLOW?

Obama has already proven he is not a leader because leaders rise to meet the challenges of the day…they do not act to crush freedom and bankrupt their nation.

Revolting is the word which typifies the Obama Administration on a daily basis.  This is not a Presidency of, by and for the people.

This is an immoral morass of a sustained political campaign funded off the backs of American taxpayers.

President Ronald Reagan revived the FDR era ‘tradition’ of a weekly radio address to discuss important issues of war and peace abroad and peace, prosperity and the pursuit of liberty at home.

He used the power of his office to enlighten and inform.  What we have today is nothing short of taxpayer-funded propaganda from the immature and incompetent Obama.

President Ronald Reagan revived the FDR era ‘tradition’ of a weekly radio address to discuss important issues of war and peace abroad and peace, prosperity and the pursuit of liberty at home. He used the power of his office to enlighten and inform.

Think about it:  How many times have you seen or heard headlines that says ‘Obama Rips GOP in Radio Address’?  He does this repeatedly and does it, more often than not, with lies.  His 2008 Presidential Campaign just never seems to end.

Someone needs to tell him, hopefully we voters, that the Presidency is not a taxpayer funded bully pulpit for him…it is an office from which all the people are to be served and represented.

Disgustingly Obama’s usual approach is to blame Republicans for Washington ‘gridlock’ or being ‘obstructionists’.  These dishonest claims are trumpeted by Obama’s cheerleaders in the media.  No-one seems willing to remind the President he rode into office with Democratic pluralities in both houses of congress rarely seen in modern American political life.

In other words President Obama is little more than an incompetent liar.  He whines.  He whines some more and then he whines again.  Community Organizers, normally funded by labor unions, local liberal political parties or even taxpayer funded grants never have to learn how to be leaders because their ‘pay’ is assured.

Sarah Palin’s challenge is to step into the disaster created by Barack Obama. She is right to fight fire with fire in the clearest vocabulary possible. The people must stand with her and we believe they will. We hope you agree.

Sadly,  the GOP Congressional Leadership STILL have no coherent message and are afraid to label Obama as dishonest and incompetent.  You hate to have to say that about any American President but the stakes have never, ever been this high.  We are racing toward economic and possible military collapse and this is not a time for timidity.

Yesterday Sarah Palin did the nation a very big favor in her usual candid and determined way.  She called White house Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel, a liar and proved her statement.

The term lie is a tough one and anyone using it must back it up.  But the time for polite and politically correct ‘chat’ is over.  With the nation staggering around the rim of oblivion we need strong and decisive voices.  We can be thankful Sarah Palin is raising hers.  The question is, when will others follow or get out of the way?

While Obama whines and the media wrap him in their  nauseous protective cloak…Americans everywhere sense that time is running short.  We’ve had enough excuses from this truly radical Administration.  Obama has already proven he is not a leader because leaders rise to meet the challenges of the day…they do not act to crush freedom and bankrupt their nation.

Ronald Reagan once stepped into the dangerous shadow of the disaster that was Jimmy Carter.  Sarah Palin’s challenge is to step into the disaster created by Barack Obama.  She is right to fight fire with fire in the clearest vocabulary possible.  The people must stand with her and we believe they will.  We hope you agree.

It was six years ago today the nation’s beloved 40th President passed away. The American pageantry of his death proved to be a rare moment of national unity. Ronald Reagan was celebrated then, as he is today, for being not only a great leader but a greater man.

It was six years ago today the nation’s beloved 40th President passed away.  The American pageantry of his death proved to be a rare moment of national unity.  Ronald Reagan was celebrated then, as he is today, for being not only a great leader but a greater man.

Humility was his constant companion as was his sense of humor.  He loved America because he loved Americans.  Each citizen, to him, was a living embodiment of liberty and a descendant of those wise souls who founded this nation with the hope we could form a more perfect union than any in the history of mankind.

He was a man who saw the office of President as a temporary position he should protect and guard well for all future occupants of that office.  To him it was an honor to serve not a place where others honored him.  He knew he did not have all the answers because he had faith in his countrymen and women that the true greatness rested with them.  Therefore as a nation we could meet any challenge, defeat any enemy and build a future of boundless opportunity for ourselves and future generations.

Ronald Reagan was also a man who revered the history of our nation but always felt the best days for America were ahead. How wonderfully refreshing. He saw in all his fellow citizens the ability to achieve great things…not only for themselves and their families…but for their communities, the country and the world.

Ronald Reagan was also a man who revered the history of our nation but always felt the best days for America were ahead.  How wonderfully refreshing.  He saw in all his fellow citizens the ability to achieve great things…not only for themselves and their families…but for their communities, the country and the world.

Ronald Reagan’s first Inaugural Address in 1981 was also the first delivered by a new President on the West Front of the Capitol.  At the end of his speech, with a voice hoarse with emotion and eyes misty with appreciation he took note of the vista in front of him with the words you will find below.

Humility was his constant companion as was his sense of humor. He loved America because he loved Americans. Each citizen, to him, was a living embodiment of liberty and a descendant of those wise souls who founded this nation with the hope we could form a more perfect union than any in the history of mankind.

Today, in 2010, at a time of great peril for our nation, it would be well for us to remember his words, his courage, his love of country and his never deflated optimism.  God Bless You Ronald Reagan for your humble, enlightened and firm leadership.

Directly in front of me, the monument to a monumental man, George Washington, father of our country. A man of humility who came to greatness reluctantly. He led Americans out of revolutionary victory into infant nationhood. Off to one side, the stately memorial to Thomas Jefferson. The Declaration of Independence flames with his eloquence. And then, beyond the Reflecting Pool, the dignified columns of the Lincoln Memorial. Whoever would understand in his heart the meaning of America will find it in the life of Abraham Lincoln.

And after all, why shouldn’t we believe that? We are Americans.
God bless you, and thank you.

PRESIDENT RONALD REAGAN Memorial Day Message 1986: Today is the day we put aside to remember fallen heroes and to pray that no heroes will ever have to die for us again. It’s a day of thanks for the valor of others, a day to remember the splendor of America and those of her children who rest in this cemetery and others. It’s a day to be with the family and remember.

It's hard not to think of the young in a place like this, for it's the young who do the fighting and dying when a peace fails and a war begins.

I was thinking this morning that across the country, children and their parents will be going to the town parade and the young ones will sit on the sidewalks and wave their flags as the band goes by. Later, maybe, they’ll have a cookout or a day at the beach. And that’s good, because today is a day to be with the family and to remember.

Arlington, this place of so many memories, is a fitting place for some remembering. So many wonderful men and women rest here, men and women who led colorful, vivid and passionate lives. There are the greats of the military: Bull Halsey and the Admirals Leahy, father and son; Black Jack Pershing; and the GI’s general, Omar Bradley. Great men all, military men. But there are others here known for other things.

All of these men were different, but they shared this in common: They loved America very much. There was nothing they wouldn’t do for her. And they loved with the sureness of the young. It’s hard not to think of the young in a place like this, for it’s the young who do the fighting and dying when a peace fails and a war begins.

And we owe them something, those boys. We owe them first a promise: That just as they did not forget their missing comrades, neither, ever, will we. And there are other promises. We must always remember that peace is a fragile thing that needs constant vigilance. We owe them a promise to look at the world with a steady gaze and, perhaps, a resigned toughness, knowing that we have adversaries in the world and challenges and the only way to meet them and maintain the peace is by staying strong.

That, of course, is the lesson of this century, a lesson learned in the Sudetenland, in Poland, in Hungary, in Czechoslovakia, in Cambodia. If we really care about peace, we must stay strong. If we really care about peace, we must, through our strength, demonstrate our unwillingness to accept an ending of the peace. We must be strong enough to create peace where it does not exist and strong enough to protect it where it does. That’s the lesson of this century and, I think, of this day. And that’s all I wanted to say. The rest of my contribution is to leave this great place to its peace, a peace it has earned.

GOVERNOR SARAH PALIN Memorial Day Message 2010: “Let no neglect, no ravages of time, testify to the present or to the coming generations that we have forgotten as a people the cost of a free and undivided republic.”  – General Orders No.11, Grand Army of the Republic Headquarters, May 5, 1868

Our prayers are especially with the surviving family members for whom everyday is memorial day, as they live on remembering their loved ones who died selflessly to protect the freedoms we hold dear.

This weekend, as we enjoy time with family and friends, we should stop and remember the meaning of this national holiday. Memorial Day is a uniquely American holiday that finds its origins in the aftermath of our Civil War, when our country searched for a proper way to commemorate the many who had fallen in the long struggle to end slavery and unify our nation.

Today, we remember all of those throughout our history and to this very day who gave their lives serving our country in uniform. Our prayers are especially with the surviving family members for whom everyday is memorial day, as they live on remembering their loved ones who died selflessly to protect the freedoms we hold dear.

And on Memorial Day, let us also remember all veterans, past and present, because everyone who wears the uniform and swears the oath is willing to make that ultimate sacrifice for America. So, in honoring them let’s keep in mind this version of a popular poem as we show respect for those willing to sacrifice all for our exceptional country:

“It is the veteran, not the preacher, who has given us freedom of religion.

It is the veteran, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the veteran, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the veteran, not the campus organizer, who has given us freedom to assemble.

It is the veteran, not the lawyer, who has given us the right to a fair trial.

It is the veteran, not the politician, who has given us the right to vote.

It is the veteran, who salutes the flag, who serves under the flag, and whose coffin will be draped by the flag.”