RETRACTED: The Rhetoric of Political Conservationism: The Post-Reagan Era

Abstract

The 21st century has opened with a conspicuous theme present in American political discourse. Conservative political thought in the United States is largely based on a compact federalist interpretation of American constitutionalism. Ronald Reagan, the Great Communicator, may be remembered as a President whose economic agenda was central to his political philosophy. This study describes Reagan’s rhetorical skills in promoting a vision of economic prosperity over the course of his eight year term. Situational factors interwoven in Reagan's optimistic discourse created the vision of America as a shining city on a hill, while de-emphasizing negative economic occurrences. Once bound by an intensely shared desire to eradicate global communism, political conservatives turned to their domestic enemies after the fall of the Berlin Wall and directed their focus squarely on the state as an instrument to effect moral and cultural reform (Diamond, 1995). Studies of the rhetorical aspects of Reaganomics have been neglected even though Regan’s rhetoric regarding political issues was prevalent throughout his presidential term.