A critical assessment of the impact of the administration of President Ronald Reagan on public discourse in the United States The authors show that more than any president since John F. Kennedy, Reagan s influence flowed from his rhetorical practices. And he is remembered as having reversed certain trends and cast the U.S. on a new course. The contributors to this insightful collection of essays show that Reagan s rhetorical tactics were matters of primary concern to his administration s chief political strategists.