What Would Reagan Do?: Life Lessons from the Last Great President

Summary

With the nation badly divided and the two major parties on a bitter collision course, what can we learn from America’s last great president?

A lot, says New York Times bestselling author and former New Jersey governor Chris Christie. In What Would Reagan Do?, Christie takes a fresh look at President Ronald Reagan’s character-driven political instincts and deeply impactful relationships across party lines—finding plenty of compelling insights for our current national dysfunction.

In each chapter, Christie spells out a lesson from a different point in Reagan’s journey, then ties all those lessons to the national challenges of today.

When Reagan turned from Hollywood to politics, America was at another breaking point. The economy was battered. Trust in government was at an all-time low. US foreign policy was an embarrassment, and Western ideals were facing enormous challenges in the world, especially from the Russians and the Chinese.

Sound familiar? Enter a fading actor who would become the fortieth president of the United States.

Countless books have been written about President Reagan’s strong conservative leadership. But Christie says few people fully appreciate the clarity of vision and subtle human relations skills that Reagan brought to the negotiating table and into the political realm. Reagan had a remarkable ability to find common ground across party lines—as Christie puts it, to “compromise without being compromised.” Building on lessons from his own hardscrabble upbringing, Reagan transformed the Republican Party and the political landscape forever.

Two decades after Reagan’s death, Christie shows how the life lessons of the beloved president are more alive than ever—and can restore American leadership again.