Cato’s David Boaz provides his perspective on Reagan’s 1964 speech for presidential candidate Barry Goldwater here. He provides links to the videos of the speech. In glorious black and white, of course. Everyone who missed it in 1964 should watch it today. I was in high school and I rushed down to Western Union office (no Internet money transfers back then) and sent $10 (a lot of money for a high school kid) to the Goldwater campaign. I still have the receipt.
Reagan said:
This idea that government was beholden to the people, that it had no
other source of power is still the newest, most unique idea in all the
long history of man?s relation to man. This is the issue of this
election: Whether we believe in our capacity for self-government or
whether we abandon the American Revolution and confess that a little
intellectual elite in a far-distant capital can plan our lives for us
better than we can plan them ourselves.
