The Reagan Administration

Abstract

The Reagan Administration openly claims New Right influence upon its economic and social policies. However, there is no simple equivalence with the experience of the Thatcher Government, except at a very general level. Both Administrations have drawn upon ‘radical’ economic doctrines — monetarism for the Thatcher Government, and supply-side economics in the American case. While these two economic doctrines have important differences, this chapter stresses similarities, since the emergence and influence of New Right economic and political theories is significant for political developments in both countries. New Right liberal ideas flourished in the United States and Britain during the mid- to late 1970s reflecting the economic difficulties confronting each country; the 1973 oil price shock heralded in a decade of serious economic difficulty, symbolised by ‘stagflation’ — the concurrence of inflation and unemployment. Treating both the Reagan and Thatcher Administrations — however briefly — is a useful comparative exercise which advances analysis of their separate experiences.