Word to LIve by & Reagan Forum

Voice of America

It’s hard to believe that 80 years ago, the Voice of America, America’s radio outreach to spread freedom and truth globally, was created. So, 40 years ago, in February 1982, our 40^th president celebrated the 40^th anniversary of the Voice of America. We think you will truly enjoy these remarks – not only does he give a history of the Voice of America, but tells some great old radio stories to entertain his audience.

Time For Choosing - Peggy Noonan

In this week’s Reagan Forum podcast we go back two weeks to February 7, 2022 for our in-person event with Peggy Noonan, who was the Foundation’s seventh speaker in its Time for Choosing Speaker Series, a new forum for leading voices in the conservative movement. As speech writer and special assistant, Peggy Noonan crafted for Ronald Reagan some of the most memorable addresses of his Presidency. From his unforgettable speech before the “boys of Pointe du Hoc” at Normandy in 1984 to mark the 40^th anniversary of D-Day, to his soothing and soaring words that moved a nation forward following the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster in 1986, Peggy displayed a mastery of her craft. As such, it is of no surprise to anyone that in her years since, as a columnist for the Wall Street Journal, she won the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary. She’s also currently a Trustee for the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute. During her Time for Choosing Speech at the Reagan Library, Peggy addressed additional critical issues facing the future of the Republican Party.

The Presidential Conference

In Ronald Reagan’s eight years as president, he held a total of 46 press conferences which is one of the lowest numbers compared to other presidencies. For example, in their eight years, Eisenhower and Clinton faced the press 193 times, Bush ’43 met with the White House Press corps 210 times and to date, Biden is at number nine. Although President Woodrow Wilson held the first presidential press conference on March 15,1913, the modern idea of a live, televised press conference dates basically from the Eisenhower Administration. Prior to that, the rules governing press conferences favored the president.

President Reagan’s Birthday

February 6, 2022 marked the 111^th anniversary of the birth of Ronald Wilson Reagan. He used to love to joke that each birthday was the anniversary of his 39^th birthday, so 2022 would have marked the 72nd anniversary of his 39^th birthday! Since President Reagan’s passing on June 5, 2004, the Reagan Foundation has worked with United States Marine Corps Camp Pendleton to hold a birthday celebration on February 6^th of each year to honor the life and legacy of our nation’s 40^th president. Each year the program includes live musical entertainment from the 1^st Marine Division Band, an honor guard, a rifle guard, and the official laying of the White House Presidential Wreath on President Reagan’s gravesite. Keynote speakers in prior years have included Rudy Giuliani, Elizabeth Dole, James Baker, and Sam Donaldson. In this week’s A Reagan Forum podcast, we listen in to the ceremony held on February 6, 2022 with keynote speaker Peggy Noonan.

Christopher Wray

In this week’s Reagan Forum podcast we go back just a few days to January 31, 2022 for our in-person event with FBI Director Christopher Wray. Director Wray spoke at the Reagan Library as part of the Library’s special exhibition, FBI: From Al Capone to Al Qaeda, which covers the history of the storied agency from inception to its modern-day efforts to fight domestic terrorism in the United States.

Hosni Mubarak, Former President of Egypt

One of the most heartbreaking moments in Reagan’s presidency came early in his term, when his dear friend and colleague, Anwar Sadat, was assassinated. The President greatly admired everything about his leadership and character and worried about who would follow and uphold the principles the fine man initiated. Who would take the helm in Egypt? The man who followed Sadat, Muhammad Hosni El Sayed Mubarak, was an Egyptian military and political leader who served as the fourth president of Egypt from 1981 to 2011.

FDR and Reagan

Ronald Reagan had tremendous respect for FDR, in many ways; in how he communicated and inspired the American people and how FDR was a devoted public servant. 40 years ago, on January 28^th, 1982, the President delivered remarks at a White House Luncheon, celebrating the Centennial of the Birth of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. We’ll listen to these remarks but first, on May 25^th, 1977, then former Governor Ronald Reagan delivered a radio address, entitled Public Servants. As you listen, think about the Air Traffic Controllers strike which occurred 4 years later in 1981, during his first year in office.

Reagan National Defense Forum 2021: Defense in the Digital Age - U.S. Cyber Capabilities and the Future of Warfare

This week’s Reagan Forum Podcast goes back to last month’s Reagan National Defense Forum, for our 4^th panel of the day, entitled Defense in the Digital Age: US Cyber Capabilities and the Future of Warfare. The panel included Representative Mike Gallagher, Admiral Michael Gilday, Chief of Naval Operations for the US Navy, Dr. Alex Karp, Cofounder and CEO of Palantir Technologies, and General Paul Nakasone, Commander of the United States Cyber Command. The panel was moderated by New York Times reporter Julian Barnes.

State of the Union

On January 27, 1987, President Ronald Reagan delivered his sixth State of the Union address, calling for cuts in domestic spending, an increase in the defense budget, and an assurance of no tax increases. But before he delivered the speech to Congress, he prepared a radio address to the nation, to be delivered several days before his annual State of the Union Address. Inspired by FDR’s Fireside Chats, Ronald Reagan felt there was an intimacy to radio which could not be replicated. And this intimacy provided an opportunity to touch the American people in a completely unique way. So, on January 24, 1987,  in this informative address, the President gave the American people a little history on the State of the Union tradition.

F-117 Stealth Fighter and Abrams Tank Dedication

This week’s Reagan Forum Podcast will be a little different, as we will spend it by honoring the expansion of the Reagan Library Peace Through Strength Pavilion.