4 things the GOP won’t tell you about Ronald Reagan (Jane Timm)

[swag]

https://medium.msnbc.com/4-things-the-gop-won-t-tell-you-about-ronald-reagan-9d4b3bbaee7f
. . .

He raised taxes — a lot.
. . .

But a year after his biggest cut — his signature Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 — came the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 1982, in which he hiked taxes to deal with the skyrocketing deficits, resulting in the largest tax hike in modern history, according to the Treasury Department’s 2006 assessment. He raised taxes again in 1983 and 1986.
. . .
He tripled the national debt — and grew government.

The national debt rose from $900 billion to $2.6 trillion while the father of the modern GOP was president.
. . .
He made it easier for women to get an abortion in California.

While serving as governor of California in 1967, Reagan both hiked taxes and signed the state’s Therapeutic Abortion Act, effectively legalizing abortion in the state. Despite changes he added to soften the bill, legal abortions skyrocketed.
. . .
He gave undocumented immigrants citizenship.

In 1986, Reagan granted amnesty to 3 million undocumented immigrants, selling it as a crackdown that would increase border security in addition to bringing people out of the shadows. The bill’s enforcement mechanisms were largely stripped from it to ensure passage, and it was widely considered unsuccessful in reforming the immigration system.

[thesquanderer]

1. This is why it was even possible for there to be Reagan democrats.

Despite the bad, you can look at things like immigration, abortion, willingness to raise taxes if need be... By today's standards, he could as easily be a right-leaning democrat. In some ways, the distance between Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton was not so great, certainly not nearly as big the Dem/Rep party divide today.