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The Atlantic

The Atlantic

How the GOP Went From Reagan to Trump

The Atlantic
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68% Informative

Julian Zelizer : Donald Trump's far-right worldview has a lot of critics, many of them Republicans , who say he would "roll over" in his grave if he could see what's happening to his old party.

But it's true that, however much Trump has changed the Republican Party since 2016 , the roots of Trumpism can be traced back to Reagan , Zelizer says.

Trump is a foul-mouthed vulgarian who maligns his critics in harsh terms, but Reagan was a consummate gentleman who seldom had a harsh word for anyone.

Frida Ghitis : Reagan displayed an often-shocking ignorance of public policy, even if he knew far more and read far more, than Trump .

She says Reagan arguably inured Republicans to Trump ’s far more pervasive falsehoods.

Ghitis says Reagan mishandled the AIDS epidemic, just as Trump mishandled COVID-19 , resulting in needless loss of life.