In his inaugural address, President Reagan famously said, “Government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.” Over the next eight years, Reagan pursued a conservative economic agenda that reduced taxes, eliminated regulations, and cut spending on social services. Together, these policies came to be known as “Reaganomics.” Whether Reaganomics were effective is still a controversial topic, with conservatives championing his policies and liberals lambasting them. In this Structured Academic Controversy, students read five documents to answer the question: Were Reaganomics good for the United States?
[Student Materials file updated on 12/21/17.]
Image: Photo of Ronald Reagan at his desk in the Oval Office in 1986. From the Library of Congress.