When Barry Goldwater accepted the Republican Nomination for president, he reminded Republicans and the nation how Eisenhower had "kept the peace by using our own strength". Goldwater pointed out communism was the "principal disturber of peace in the world" and "America can keep the peace only if we remain vigilant and only if we remain strong". The year was 1964, and Goldwater was declaring his foreign policy of "Peace through Strength".
In that same year, Ronald Reagan hit the campaign trail for Barry Goldwater and explained in plain language the meaning in the phrase "Peace through Strength". Reagan told us "we can not buy our security, our freedom from the threat of the bomb" by giving up on our dreams and making a deal with the Soviet Union. Reagan told America, that a policy of accommodation is appeasement and can only lead to our surrender. Reagan spoke of never giving up.
"should Moses have told the children of Israel to live in slavery under the pharaohs? Should Christ have refused the cross? Should the patriots at Concord Bridge have thrown down their guns and refused to fire the shot heard 'round the world?'. You and I have the courage to say to our enemies, 'There is a price we will not pay.' 'There is a point beyond which they must not advance.' And this—this is the meaning in the phrase of Barry Goldwater's "peace through strength." Winston Churchill said, 'The destiny of man is not measured by material computations. When great forces are on the move in the world, we learn we're spirits—not animals."Reagan continued, "There's something going on in time and space, and beyond time and space, which, whether we like it or not, spells duty." Telling our enemies that there is a price we will not pay, that was the meaning in the phrase of Barry Goldwater's "Peace through Strength". It was not just a phrase, but our duty, Reagan ended his speech with these famous words: "You and I have a rendezvous with destiny. We'll preserve for our children this, the last best hope of man on earth, or we'll sentence them to take the last step into a thousand years of darkness."
In 1983, President Ronald Reagan returned to this concept of "peace through strength". In his 1983 state of the union address, Reagan explained his strategy for peace and freedom. Not just military strength but economic strength as well.
"But our strategy for peace with freedom must also be based on strength—economic strength and military strength. A strong American economy is essential to the well-being and security of our friends and allies. The restoration of a strong, healthy American economy has been and remains one of the central pillars of our foreign policy. The progress I've been able to report to you tonight will, I know, be as warmly welcomed by the rest of the world as it is by the American people."Reagan had just spent the last 40 minutes explaining to congress and the nation how he would rebuild the American economy, now he was tying the strength of the American economy to our own security and to the security of our friends and allies. This put everything into perspective including the recommendation of a Federal spending freeze and the $55 billion in defense spending. It was the reason behind a proposal of an employment act, and a request to increase math and science education. It was the reason behind Reagan's advocacy of free trade. And finally, it was the reason behind maintaining an adequate deterrence against a nuclear Soviet union . President Ronald Reagan, knew that America must negotiate with the Soviets from a place of strength.
"With firmness and dedication, we'll continue to negotiate. Deep down, the Soviets must know it's in their interest as well as ours to prevent a wasteful arms race. And once they recognize our unshakable resolve to maintain adequate deterrence, they will have every reason to join us in the search for greater security and major arms reductions. When that moment comes—and I'm confident that it will—we will have taken an important step toward a more peaceful future for all the world's people."
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=41698
http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/reference/timechoosing.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/daily/may98/goldwaterspeech.htm
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https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/Reagan_salute_1984.jpg
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