Ronald Reagan,
American Patriot

Ronald Reagan, the 40th President of these United States, was a true American patriot, a great communicator, a great inspiration, and a great leader. It's hard to realize it's been more than 20 years since he left office, and more than 5 years since he was laid to rest on the grounds of his Presidential Library overlooking beautiful Simi Valley, California.

Any words we write would be inadequate to express our admiration for this great man. He was a true leader who had the courage of his convictions, and by refusing to compromise them, he literally changed the world.

As we observe his birthday today (February 6), we'd like to remind you of some of his inspirational words, and of his sense of humor.

If you'd like to pay your own tribute to President Reagan on what would have been his birthday, please scroll down to the form below and enter your comments.

"Freedom is one of the deepest and noblest aspirations of the human spirit."

"A people free to choose will always choose peace."

"Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women. It is a weapon our adversaries in today's world do not have."

"Concentrated power has always been the enemy of liberty."

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States, where men were free."

"Government exists to protect us from each other. Where government has gone beyond its limits is in deciding to protect us from ourselves."

"Government's first duty is to protect the people, not run their lives."

"History teaches that war begins when governments believe the price of aggression is cheap."

"I have wondered at times what the Ten Commandments would have looked like if Moses had run them through the US Congress."

"I know in my heart that man is good. That what is right will always eventually triumph. And there's purpose and worth to each and every life."

"I have left orders to be awakened at any time in case of national emergency, even if I'm in a cabinet meeting."

"If we ever forget that we are One Nation Under God, then we will be a nation gone under."

"If we love our country, we should also love our countrymen."

"It has been said that politics is the second oldest profession. I have learned that it bears a striking resemblance to the first."

"It's difficult to believe that people are still starving in this country because food isn't available."

"Let us be sure that those who come after will say of us in our time, that in our time we did everything that could be done. We finished the race; we kept them free; we kept the faith."

"Of the four wars in my lifetime, none came about because the U.S. was too strong."

"One way to make sure crime doesn't pay would be to let the government run it."

"...there is no limit to what a man can do or where he can go if he doesn't mind who gets the credit."

"Peace is not the absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means."

"Protecting the rights of even the least individual among us is basically the only excuse the government has for even existing."

"Recession is when a neighbor loses his job. Depression is when you lose yours."

"Republicans believe every day is the Fourth of July, but the democrats believe every day is April 15."

"Some people wonder all their lives if they've made a difference. The Marines don't have that problem."

"The most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the government and I'm here to help."

"The taxpayer - that's someone who works for the federal government but doesn't have to take the civil service examination."

"There are no easy answers' but there are simple answers. We must have the courage to do what we know is morally right."

"Today we did what we had to do. They counted on America to be passive. They counted wrong."

"We must reject the idea that every time a law's broken, society is guilty rather than the lawbreaker. It is time to restore the American precept that each individual is accountable for his actions."

"Without God, democracy will not and cannot long endure."

"The house we hope to build is not for my generation but for yours. It is your future that matters. And I hope that when you are my age, you will be able to say as I have been able to say: We lived in freedom. We lived lives that were a statement, not an apology."

"We will always remember. We will always be proud. We will always be prepared, so we will always be free."

"You and I have a rendezvous with destiny. We will preserve for our children this, the last best hope of man on earth, or we will sentence them to take the first step into a thousand years of darkness. If we fail, at least let our children and our children's children say of us we justified our brief moment here. We did all that could be done."

"The ultimate determinant in the struggle now going on for the world will not be bombs and rockets but a test of wills and ideas - a trial of spiritual resolve: the values we hold, the beliefs we cherish and the ideals to which we are dedicated."

Excerpts from Ronald Reagan's handwritten Presidential diaries, published by Vanity Fair in 2007.

Letter of gratitude from Nancy Reagan following the outpouring of love shown by the American people at the President's funeral.

And the ultimate Ronald Reagan tribute, with thanks to our friend Katie:

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