Selection time (again) – Carswellfamilyfoundation

Sixty years ago this week, Ronald Reagan gave a speech in support of Barry Goldwater’s presidential bid. It was called “Choice Time.”

Re-reading the speech or watching it on YouTube is a reminder of how little has changed in six decades. Some of the issues discussed in 1964 are still discussed and unresolved.

Regarding taxes and spending, Reagan noted: “Thirty-seven cents of every dollar earned in this country is the tax collector’s share, and yet our government continues to spend $17 million a day more than the government receives. our budget for 28 of the last 34 years.”

According to the U.S. Treasury Department, in fiscal year 2024, “about $0.43 of every dollar goes to the government.” And the debt is $35 trillion, making the 1964 debt look like chump change.

This line captures the essence of Reagan’s philosophy and will define conservatism for decades to come: “It is the question of this election: whether we believe in our capacity for self-government or whether we abandon the American Revolution and recognize that a small intellectual elite in a distant capital can plan our better lives for us.” than we can plan it ourselves.”

The only difference between then and now in this passage are the names: “…they have voices that say, ‘The Cold War will end if we accept non-undemocratic socialism.’ Another voice says, “The profit motive is outdated. It needs to be replaced by welfare state incentives.” Or: “Our traditional system of individual freedom is unable to solve the complex problems of the 20th century.” Senator Fulbright said at Stanford University that the Constitution is outdated. He called the president “our moral teacher and our leader” and said that “his task is hampered by the restrictions on power imposed on him by this outdated document.” He must be “released” to “do for us what he thinks is best.” And Senator Clark of Pennsylvania, another eloquent spokesman, defines liberalism as “the satisfaction of the material needs of the masses through the full power of a centralized government.”

Isn’t this a fair comparison between the philosophies of today’s Democrats and Republicans (no matter how harsh the words used by Donald Trump)?

The debate about the role of government in individual lives and in business is also nothing new. Reagan said it best when he said, “…the total power of a centralized government was exactly what the Founding Fathers sought to minimize. They knew that governments had no control over anything. The government cannot control the economy without controlling the people. And they know that when the government sets out to do this, it must use force and coercion to achieve its goal. They also knew, these Founding Fathers, that, beyond its legitimate functions, government does nothing as well or as cost-effectively as the private sector of the economy.”

Reagan had a way of communicating great truths to ordinary people through his stories and analogies, such as this one: “We have so many people who cannot see a fat man standing next to a thin man and not conclude that the fat man got it that way.” taking advantage of the subtle. So they are going to solve all the problems of human suffering through government and government planning. Well, now, if government planning and social welfare had the answer – and they have for almost 30 years – shouldn’t we expect the government to read us the bill from time to time? Shouldn’t they tell us about the annual decline in the number of people needing help?

They can’t because government doesn’t solve many problems, or as Reagan often said, “government is the problem.”

Although Goldwater lost the election, the speech brought Reagan national attention and the presidency in 1980. It’s worth reading to see how little has changed and that now is still a time of choice.

Cal Thomas is a columnist and author. Readers can contact him at [email protected].