Although Reagan came close to death, the medical team's quick action—and Parr's decision to drive to the hospital instead of the White House—likely saved the president's life. After the assassination attempt, Jerry Parr was hailed as a hero.
Timothy J. McCarthy (born June 20, 1949) is an American former police officer and special agent in the United States Secret Service. McCarthy is best known for defending President Ronald Reagan during the assassination attempt on Reagan's life on Monday, March 30, 1981, in Washington, D.C.
Dutch: shortly after his birth, his father said he looked like a "fat little Dutchman"; reinforced when he wore a Dutch boy haircut (see pageboy) as a youngster. The Gipper, after his role as George "The Gipper" Gipp in the film Knute Rockne, All American.
After challenging and losing to incumbent president Gerald Ford in the 1976 Republican presidential primaries, Reagan won the Republican nomination and then a landslide victory over incumbent Democratic president Jimmy Carter in the 1980 presidential election.
John Warnock Hinckley Jr. (born May 29, 1955) is an American who attempted to assassinate U.S. President Ronald Reagan as he left the Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C., on March 30, 1981, two months after Reagan's first inauguration.
'In the Secret Service: The True Story of the Man Who Saved President Reagan's Life' by Jerry Parr
Was Reagan a good president?
Reagan's leadership was, above all, a triumph of personality. His eloquence, charm, courage (recall his behavior after the assassination attempt), and remarkable sense of self revived Americans' pride in the presidential office and, by extension, in the nation itself.
The tallest U.S. president was Abraham Lincoln at 6 feet 4 inches (193 centimeters), while the shortest was James Madison at 5 feet 4 inches (163 centimeters).
Reagan and other conservatives successfully presented conservative ideas as an alternative to a public that had grown disillusioned with New Deal liberalism. Reagan's charisma and speaking skills helped him frame conservatism as an optimistic, forward-looking vision for the country.
“I'm living in Williamsburg and I've got a good life,” Hinckley said. “I take care of my cat; I take care of myself. I don't bother anybody, I'm just a good neighbor, I believe.” Remorseful for what he's done, he's eager to do what he's loved doing since youth.
What were the bad things about Reagan's presidency?
His opponents contend that Reagan's poor policies, such as bloating the national defense, drastically cutting social services, and making missiles-for-hostages deals, led the country into record deficits and global embarrassment.
Two of the most famous presidents in American history had no formal religious affiliation. The first, Thomas Jefferson, lost his faith in traditional Christianity at an early age but continued to believe in an impersonal God as the creator of the universe.
Ronald Reagan (January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989) was naturally left-handed but wrote with his right hand. George H. W. Bush (January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1993) was left-handed. All three major candidates for president in 1992 were left-handed: Bill Clinton won.
Tall, stately, stiffly formal in the high stock he wore around his jowls, James Buchanan was the only President who never married. Presiding over a rapidly dividing Nation, Buchanan grasped inadequately the political realities of the time.
Taft was the most obese president. He was 5 feet 11 inches (1.80 m) tall and his weight was between 325 pounds (147 kg) and 280 pounds (130 kg) toward the end of his presidency.
Reagan's economic legacy is mixed. On the one hand, tax reduction and a tightening of interest rates by the Federal Reserve led to a record period of peacetime economic growth. On the other, this growth was accompanied by record growth in the national debt, the federal budget deficit, and the trade deficit.
The 1980 United States presidential election was the 49th quadrennial presidential election, held on November 4, 1980. The Republican nominee, former California governor Ronald Reagan, defeated incumbent Democratic President Jimmy Carter in a landslide victory.
