He Looks Like $50

A highway, airport, aircraft carrier and one of the biggest federal buildings in DC are all named after Ronald Reagan. But that's not enough for his conservative acolytes -- now they want to replace war hero turned corrupt president Ulysses S. Grant on the $50 bill (www.latimes.com/news/nation-and-world/la-na-reagan-fifty3-2010mar03,0,6008759.story). So I thought on the heals of this potentially momentus tribute to the greatest President of the 20th century we should look back on his many accomplishments . . .

- Cut the top tax rate down from 70% to 28%
- Cut the capital gains tax precipitously
- Both these helped increased income inequality to the worst in the developed world
- Moved us from the biggest creditor to biggest debtor nation in the world
- Increased the deficit from $700 billion to $3 trillion
- Oversaw the S&L crisis and 1987 Stock Market Crash
- Helped out those poor Contras in their fight against the insidious communists in Nicaragua
- Turned back the clock on the pesky civil rights movement
- Commenced those fun loving "blame the teachers" and "blame the victim" movements in America
- Got rid of annoying market oversight and regulation thus helping Walls Street make a lot more money *

and

- Ended communism single-handedly (and I have a share in the Brooklyn Bridge I'd like to sell you)

Long live your legacy, our fallen king.

* This also helped cause the financial crisis we are currently mired in, but that's just nitpicking.