Nov. 18, 2:43 AM EST
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP)-- Jackson Stewart, 27 of Sacramento, California invoked Ronald Reagan in an argument for the one trillionth time since 1989 experts say. Reagan, a former President of the United States and conservative icon, has been regulary invoked in arguments since leaving office in 1989.
Stewart, when asked for comment has stated that he had invoked Reagan's name in an argument with his wife over what brand of milk to buy. Stewart, who says both he and his wife are "deeply commited to conservative causes" and who professes to be a great admirer of former President Reagan, stated "Well, you know, I brought his name up to get an edge in the argument, you know? She wanted to get this one brand of milk, and I didn't like it so I pointed out that President Reagan never would have bought that brand of milk."
"It is not suprising that his name has brought up so many times" says Patrick Miller, a fellow at the Heritage Institute, a conservative think tank. "He really speaks to conservatives, and he's a real hero to many of that are still left in the movement" Miller said. Miller cited the explosive growth of the national debt, his installation and support of dictators for short term political gain, the massive increase in income disparity and his fierce war against the middle class as primary reasons that Reagan holds such an exalted position among conservatives. Miller commented further that "You know he just really excites the base, he did so much to put all the wealth in the hands of a small, elite minority and to disenfranchise huge segements of the population. There is so much conservatives owe to Reagan."
Experts also state that they believe the amount of times Reagan is invoked will continue to increase, at least for the foreseeable future. Josh Leblanc, a research for Stanford University stated "You know, there is absolutely no reason to believe the amount of times he's invoked is going to lower any time soon". Leblanc pointing to the debates in the Republican Presidential Primary as evidence, stating "the Republican candidates invoke his name more often then anything other then 9/11, and if you take out Rudy Guiliani, Reagan wins hands down". Stacey Bruce, a professor of political science at George Washington University agreed "there's still a lot of love for Reagan in the Republican party, and the conservative movement. I mean Mitt Romney has been talking about proposing that we have a Ronald Reagan Appreciation Month."
Some Reagan critics have decried this milestone as meaningless, or even worse. Paul Krugman, a noted shrill political hack and economics professor from Princeton University, stated "this is one of the most ridiculous things I've ever heard. This is the man who destroyed the middle class, and he's had his name uttered 1800 times per second since 1989? Unbelievable!" However, Republican leadership hailed the news, Mitch McConnell, the Republican Senate Minority Leader is quoted as saying "this is great news for America, and terrible news for the enemies of America. Freedom is on the rise in Iraq, the economy has never been better and the United States is serving as a shining beacon of freedom to the rest of the world. This is due to the great legacy left behind by President Reagan." David Broder, the "Dean of the Washington Press Corps", is also quoted as stating that "this may be remembered as the moment when President George W. Bush began his remarkable comeback in salvaging his political legacy and restoring the Republican party back to it's proper role as the leaders of the country."
Associated Press writer Eric in Manassas contributed to this report.
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