Andrew E. Busch Topic: Ronald Reagan and the Politics of Freedom — 1:31:07 RealAudio: Click Here to Listen Help Listening

Summary: Twenty years after Ronald Reagan took office as President of the United States, Americans still debate the meaning of his presidency. Far from promoting a "decade of greed," as some have claimed, Busch asserts that Reagan’s presidency should be understood as contributing, significantly and deliberately, to a "decade of liberty." Indeed, the key theme holding together Reagan’s rhetoric, policies, and political coalition-building was the promotion of what Reagan saw as key components of American freedom. These included political freedom, sustained by constitutionalism and a discourse of freedom; economic freedom nurtured by a vibrant free-market economy; social underpinnings of freedom like a strong civil society; and the successful defense of freedom against its foreign adversaries.

Andrew E. Busch is an Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Denver, where he specializes in American government and politics. Dr. Busch is the author of Ronald Reagan and the Politics of Freedom, released in August 2001 by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. He has also authored or co-authored five other books on American politics, including The Perfect Tie: The True Story of the 2000 Presidential Election (co-authored with James W. Ceaser).

He received his M.A. and Ph.D. in government from the University of Virginia and his B.A. in history and political science from the University of Colorado, Boulder.