Lou Cannon's definitive biography of Ronald Reagan, based on hundreds of interviews with the president, First Lady, and major administration figures. The text provides a behind-the-scenes account of Reagan's presidency, covering his roles from the affable cowboy to the Great Communicator who helped end the Cold War. It is described as the superlative study of a president and his presidency in the last fifty years.
Use Cases
- Analyzing presidential rhetoric and communication strategies based on the description of Reagan as the 'Great Communicator'.
- Studying the relationship between public persona and private complexities in political leadership based on the theme of performance versus reality.
- Examining the political and economic contradictions of an administration based on mentions of denouncing big government while creating a large deficit.
- Researching Cold War history and U.S.-Soviet relations based on the account of Reagan's role in ending the conflict.
Strengths
- Based on hundreds of interviews with the president, First Lady, and major administration figures.
- Described by the New Yorker as the superlative study of a president and his presidency in the last fifty years.
Limitations
- Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
- Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
- Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.
Provenance
- Source
- Lou Cannon
- Collection Method
- Based on hundreds of interviews.
- Time Range
- Covers the Reagan presidency.
- Freshness
- Last updated: unknown
- Geography
- Primarily United States, with focus on Cold War international relations.