Ronald Reagan Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician who served as the 40th President of the United States from 1981 to 1989. Prior to the presidency, he was a Hollywood actor and union leader before serving as the 33rd Governor of California from 1967 to 1975. Reagan was raised in a poor family in small towns of northern Illinois. He graduated from Eureka College in 1932 and worked as a sports announcer on several regional radio stations. After moving to California in 1937, he became an actor and starred in a few major
Political positions of Ronald Reagan under his predecessor, President Jimmy Carter. This view stemmed from his less-government intervention views. He had pledged to abolish the department, but did not pursue that goal as President. As President, Reagan removed controls on oil prices, resulting in lower prices and an oil glut. He did not reduce U.S. dependency on oil by imposing an oil-importing fee because of his opposition to taxation. He trusted the free marketplace. Lower global oil prices had the effect of reducing the income that the Soviet Union could earn from its oil exports. Political positions of Ronald Reagan Ronald Reagan was the 40th