Hon. Michael G. Oxley: “the leadership that Ronald Reagan provided changed the country and the world. I had the privilege to be elected to…”

“the leadership that Ronald Reagan provided changed the country and the world. I had the privilege to be elected to Congress during the heady days of the `Reagan Revolution.' I had barely won a special election in June 1981 to keep the Fourth Ohio District in Republican hands, and as a young freshman congressman was quickly invited to the White House to meet the President and his aides. It was more than a welcome to Washington because the President's tax cut package was pending on the floor the next week, and I think they were there to take my temperature as well as to make sure that I was going to vote for the tax cut. I was proud to support the tax cut, the military buildup that helped win the Cold War, and the President's policies up and down the line. President Reagan's economic program lifted us out of the malaise of the late 1970s, when America was doubting its greatness, and set the stage for a historic period of prosperity that benefitted all segments of our society. Still, I believe that Ronald Reagan is most likely to be celebrated as the President who led the way in winning the Cold War. People in the past had always talked about the containment of Soviet communism and yet Reagan's theory behind the Cold War was essentially, we win and they lose. He was able to lead the country and Congress into modernizing our military and ultimately brought about the end of what he called the Evil Empire.”