Today we’re celebrating the birthday of our nation’s 40th President, Ronald Reagan.
He was born in a small, second-story apartment above a tavern in Tampico, Illinois, on February 6th, 1911.
After graduating from college and struggling to find a job in Illinois during the Depression, Reagan moved to Davenport, Iowa, where he landed a job at WOC radio.
He started off calling University of Iowa football games – quickly becoming the voice of Hawkeye football.
Soon after, he moved to Des Moines to work for WHO radio as the chief sports announcer, where he called Chicago Cubs games from the studio of that radio station.
If you know the history of that way of [reporting on] baseball – you read off the teletype and tried to put in as much color as you could.
In addition to baseball, Reagan called a variety of other sports, including basketball, boxing and the prestigious Drake Relays – and they still are a prestigious relay.
It was also during this time that Reagan had the opportunity to call the 1933 World Series between the Cubs and the Washington Senators.
During his time in Iowa, he improved his speaking skills – later gaining the title of “The Great Communicator.”
For this Senator, 1980 marked a turning point in our nation’s history – a time when Americans demanded change.
It was the year Ronald Reagan was elected President, and I had the honor of being elected to the United States Senate.
Reagan’s 1980 campaign slogan, “Let’s Make America Great Again,” reflected a call to restore confidence in the United States during a time of economic struggles, particularly high inflation, foreign policy failures and widespread dissatisfaction with government leadership.
Now, does that sound familiar?
Much like Reagan’s vision, President Trump aims to restore America’s strength and leadership.
President Trump is taking action to secure our southern border.
I look forward to working alongside President Trump and his administration to continue the fight for a stronger, a safer and a more prosperous America.
