Early in 1982, President Ronald Reagan arrived in New York City to speak with an audience of business leaders gathered at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. A year into Reagan's first term, the country had fallen into a deep recession. In his speech to the enthusiastic crowd, though, the president found reason to hope.
Wearing a scarf decorated with an “I ♥ NY” logo, a gift from Mayor Koch, Reagan praised the way that New York had pulled together when it faced bankruptcy in the 1970s. “When New York was in trouble, groups which had quarreled for years joined together for the greater good of saving the city,” he insisted. “Labor, business, voluntary associations all pitched in.” What had saved the city was “private initiative”—and this, Reagan was sure, would save the nation as a whole. “I think we've made our choice and turned a historic corner. We're not going back to the glory days of big government.”
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