When Presidents Talk About Hope and Change . . . and Mean It

When Ronald Reagan toured Europe, speeches were prepared for each of his stops. At a scheduled stop at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, a speechwriter took the initiative to propose a challenge to then Soviet President Gorbachev to go further in his reforms to open the borders of Eastern Europe. Reagan's advisers nixed the idea, but Reagan reinserted the wording "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!"
Within four years, the Soviet empire was dismantled thanks to Reagan's boldness and willingness to back his statements with action.


Contrasting Reagan's assertiveness with Obama's empty promise of "Hope and Change" while waffling with advisors and polls, we are left shaking our heads. Reagan has ever been given the credit he deserves for ending the Cold War. And yet our present President seeks credit for things he has no right to and does not deserve. Here is the end of Reagan's words at the Brandenburg Gate:

Somewhere Ronald Reagan is looking down on this country and shaking his head.