Source: Orange County Register
by Steven Greenhut
“Having grown up as a Democrat in Pennsylvania in the 1970s — the only Republicans I knew were of the Rockefeller variety and wore bowties — I was greatly influenced by the rise of Reagan and eagerly switched parties after the 1980 election. I remember the era’s politics clearly, as I was studying political science at George Washington University. (I couldn’t get back to my dorm room after the Reagan assassination attempt, as the president was convalescing at GWU hospital and the streets were closed.) So when I hear my Republican friends compare Trump to the Reagan era, I half-heartedly agree. Yes, we’re seeing the revival of that decade’s debates — except Trump is an almost exact replica of the Democratic politicians of the time, but with a socially conservative twist.” (06/06/25)