I loved Reagan. I think it's important to remember not every major event that happens in the United States is the work of the President. He's the symbol and protector of the free world not the ruler of it. In order to have an effective government you need a functional Congress and a President who's both a leader and a compromiser.

As for Reagan, I'd put him in the top 10 out of the best all time. Not top 5 but certainly top 10 or 15.

He made everyone proud to be Americans again after the Nixon-Carter years. Oversaw a period of great prosperity, worked well with Congress and Tipp O'Neill. Was likeable, communicated, was a true leader, put Gaddafi in his place, helped bring down the Soviet Union, and survived an assassination attempt. He was a breath of fresh air.

Of course my couple marks against him would be, as Turnbull mentioned, the upswing of wealth to the top 1 or 2% of people certainly did not benefit the majority of Americans. Reagan was a social conservative but he was also a man of his generation. I wish he also did more to combat HIV and the AIDS virus.

As for the Unions, a lot of them were corrupt anyway at the time and had pushed costs too high so work was going down south or overseas. Unions have their place of course, but greed is greed, no matter what economic ideology it comes from. The Unions in this country went too far and it brought consequences. One of which is pensions and benefits that now can't be afforded.

Overall I think Reagan was a very good President