As I reflect on President Reagan’s legacy, I think back to President George W. Bush’s tribute to Reagan on his 90th Birthday. That day, Bush said:
Your achievements, Mr. President, are clear to all Americans. They are found in the spirit of our nation and the peace of the world.
You came here at a time when our country needed confidence. You told us we could be strong again, at home and abroad. And when you left, we were.
You came to the White House when the Cold War was real.
You told us, even when few believed it, that the evil empire would pass and that freedom would prevail. And your resolve made it happen.
America knows you came here twenty years ago and changed the world. America knows the good heart that always guided you -- the unbending principles that always defined you ... the kindness and courage and inner grace that makes you the man you are. For all of that, your country thanks you, Mr. President. Your country honors you. And your country loves you.
How truly those words resonate today. Though President Reagan is no longer physically with us, his vision, his ideals, his optimism must not disappear. Our work now is to ensure that America continues in the bold direction he set for us.
