Open Phones: Reagan Democrats

Welcome to Politics Bites, where every afternoon at It's A Free Country, we bring you the unmissable quotes from the morning's political conversations on WNYC. On the day after what would have been Ronald Reagan's 100th birthday, The Brian Lehrer Show took calls from Reagan Democrats about his success in courting Democratic voters.

Back in college it was unusual to be a Democrat and vote for Reagan, but the main thing is the hope that he gave and how proud he made us feel about our country and how great it is. While I voted for Obama, I kind of cringe sometimes when he apologizes for our country, and he just doesn't seem to make everyone seem as proud to be an American.

—Paul in Nutley

I voted for Reagan during his first presidential election, and I voted for him probably in retrospect because of his charisma and because of his acting background—I was in the arts and I thought he'd put a lot of money in that direction. It was based on a very superficial idea of what I thought he represented, and I rapidly went the other direction once I saw what his policies entailed and loathed his administration after that.

—Kevin in Brooklyn

I voted for him both times and really believed in the personality he brought. I think I changed my philosophy about what to vote for in an election, thinking that government is 90 percent administration and 10 percent politics sometimes, and you just really want a smart person in charge who's running things efficiently. I felt like Reagan was there and wound up voting Republican for that reason. They seemed more organized, like they could run government better.

—Ryan in Manhattan

I grew up in a house where everyone was a Democrat—we even had a picture of my grandfather shaking Jimmy Carter's hand. When I started to show a lot of admiration for the way I felt Reagan had led the country, it caused a lot of consternation in my family to say the least.

There was something about the way I felt looking at Reagan, when he stood up and said, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall," things like that. I always look for presidents coming after that to have that kind of stand-up-for-what's-right moment...The US is trying to be on the side that's right. We're not always, but we're at least trying. That stuck in my mind.

—Joe in Manhattan

I was a Democrat during a period when I was pretty unreflective politically and everyone around me was a Democrat. I became disenchanted with everything as a consequence of Jimmy Carter, which I considered a sickening presidency—that is to say, he made the country ill. I realized we needed someone healthy and wholesome in the presidency, ideology be damned. Reagan was that man, no question about it.

—Stephen in New Brunswick

In 1991, I went to Prague with a bunch of leading New York City and state political figures to participate in a seminar on municipal governance in a democracy...There I met a lot of people associated with the Velvet Revolution. They were artists, they loved rock'n'roll and all things not associated with Reagan and the Republican party, but they loved Reagan. He was a hero to them. He had the strength and the clarity to stand up to the Soviet Union, and they loved him as much as they loved Frank Zappa. 

—John in Norwalk