Donald Trump is no Ronald Reagan

Donald Trump has remade the GOP on policy.  

But not on nostalgia of the good old days. That remains the same.

'They didn’t ask what this country could do for them but what they could do to make this, this refuge, the greatest home of freedom in history. They brought with them courage and the values of family, work, and freedom. Let us pledge to each other that we can make America great again."

          Ronald Reagan, on Immigrants, 1980

Donald Trump represents a reversal of Ronald Reagan on key issues. But that is only part of the story.

Muslims:

Ronald Reagan praised Muslim anti-communist jihadis. He supported and armed Al-Quada, fought the USSR and communism in Afghanistan. Their religious fervor was a tool for good against the greater enemy, communism.

Donald Trump says Muslims are dangerous, abroad and at home. Their religious fervor is a tool for violence against America and Christians.

Russia:

Ronald Reagan saw Moscow and its efforts to extend territorial and ideological dominance as the great enemy of the American way of life.

Trump had complex friendly relations with Putin, Russian oligarchs, and Russia generally.

Trade:

Reagan was a free trader, saying it brought both American and world prosperity, confident that American enterprise could compete and succeed worldwide. Reagan:

"My fellow Americans, here in America, as we reflect on the many things we have to be grateful for, we should take a moment to recognize that one of the key factors behind our nation's great prosperity is the open trade policy that allows the American people to freely exchange goods and services with free people around the world."

Trump says free trade allows other countries to out-compete us. It hurts prosperity. It costs jobs. We lose, Trump says. 

Immigration:

Reagan Speech

Ronald Reagan said immigration was a good thing, that immigrants brought good values. America was a refuge for exiles. He signed an immigration bill that offered amnesty to three million people here illegally and it allowed substantial increase in immigration from Latin America and Asia. Click: Immigrants-Have-Always-Made-America-Great.mp4   Reagan believed in the free movement of people, including the right to emigrate.

Donald Trump takes the opposite view. He sharply cut allowable refugee numbers and presents immigrants as a vector for crime, violence, and economic competition. He tells people in Central America and the Middle East to stay put and stay away. Immigrants are dangerous and they dilute and change real American culture.

Globalism and multilateral agreements.

Reagan actively supported world institutions, including alliances and multilateral rule making. The US led coalitions.

Trump opposes multilateral agreements because he says they disadvantage the US. Every county should openly and freely pursue its own interests because that is what they in fact do. We should openly acknowledge this, and openly pursue a policy of each country for itself.

Institutions:

Reagan projected deep conservatism in the form of respect for American institutions: a free press, universities, unions, churches, political parties, and the other branches of government. Reagan was a nationalist who used stirring oratory to praise the nation's institutions.

Trump projects populist contempt for American institutions, which he associates with elitism, dishonesty, and injustice. Trump describes institutions of press, universities, and opposition parties as enemies of the nation. 

Modern

How could Trump reverse direction on issues and still keep the GOP coalition intact?

Make America Great Again.

Good old days. Both Reagan and Trump communicated a sentimental affection for the post World War Two America, one that was white, Christian, male-dominated, i.e. "traditional." In this America the US was the sole remaining world power, American industry was undamaged from the war and was so productive compared with foreign competition that a single wage-earner in a manufacturing job could support a family well.

The world has changed, and many people feel this this is for the worse.

Nationalism in opposition to government. Both Reagan and Trump communicated a popular message of reduced government regulation and "swamp" cleaning.

Sentiment

White racial pride and resentment. Ronald Reagan began his 1980 campaign in Philadelphia, Mississippi, population 7,000, the place where a civil rights worker was murdered, and where investigation of his murder was stymied by local law enforcement. Reagan spoke about states' rights. Reagan communicated that traditional America was racially white. Trump, too, appealed to white resentment of affirmative action and black privilege, beginning with questioning Obama's citizenship, grades, and acceptance at college and law school, and then as president as a sharp critic of ingratitude or dissent by Afro-Americans and opposition to immigration from Latin America and Asia.

Tax cuts and deficits. Both Trump and Reagan protested deficits as candidates and then, as president, supported increases in military spending combined with tax cuts. Deficits expanded. This is popular. Young people, who will pay for this, do not vote in high numbers.