Reaganomics and "Read My Lips"

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Phase 3 Individual Project Reaganomics & “Read My Lips” By Vincent J. Knowles Professor Carpenter Reaganomics was a popular term that was used in reference to the economic policies of the 40th President of the United States of America, President Ronald Reagan. President Reagan’s economic policies called for the widespread tax cuts, decreased social spending, increased military spending, and the deregulation of domestic markets. The hold idea of Reaganomics can be boiling down to a theory called the ‘trickle-down theory,’ which according to investopedia.com (2014), “Reaganomics was partially based on the principles of supply-side economics and the trickle-down theory. These theories hold the view that decreases in taxes, especially for corporations, is the best way to stimulate economic growth: the idea is that if the expenses of corporations are reduced, the savings will "trickle down" to the rest of the economy, spurring growth.” The problem with the trickle-down is the foundation that is supposed to make this theory work; which is cutting the taxes for the corporations that set the prices for the consumer and the deregulations of the market. When the taxes for the corporate were cut this should have led to the corporations cutting the cost of their produces’ but this does not happen. When Ronald Reagan won the presidency in 1980 President Reagan started to implement economic policies; and after his first term President Reagan had cut the top tax rate from 70% down to 50% and when he left the office in 1989 it was down to just 28%. The federal government revenue was cut very significantly that funding for basic programs went away. With the lack of money the country had to spend President Reagan still increased military spending to $456.5 Billion by 1987. With Reaganomics at full steam ahead the wealth and posterity did not “trickle-down” as
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