Abstract
First, the economy is a partial success and a partial failure. The country was facing economic difficulties, with the rise of the cost of living, the rise of unemployment, and a budget deficit. Reagan's program, accepted by Congress on march 1981, was to cut government spending in social domestic programs, to reduce of 30% of income taxes over 3 years, and to prevent inflation by a monetary policy. In August 1981, Congress approved a massive tax cut, following Reagan's idea of supplied-side of economics. We can see some successes in this policy: the economy rebounded in 1983, with a rise of 4,3% of the GNP, and a lower unemployment (8%). The period from 1983 to 1990 saw the fall of unemployment, economic growth, new jobs, and a stable inflation. But at the same time, Reagan's policy was a social failure. Following his ideas of deregulation, free market, and reduction of the power of the federal government, Reagan applied «deregulation at all costs» : he crushed the strike of the air traffic controllers and fired every controllers ; he also strongly weakened the power of trade unions.
Moreover, Reagan cut programs that directly benefited poor people (food stamps, Aid to Families with Dependent Children, school lunches, housing assistance, Medicaid). The critics also say that at the end of Reagan's administration, the average family was paying more taxes than in 1980, and that the deficit tripled during his presidency. During the eighties, the number of poor people grew (13,5% of the population). Also, due to the high interest rates for construction and the tax law changes, there was less and less low-cost rental housing, and more and more people were homeless ; and Reagan's budget measures reduced funds available for shelters for homeless people. So we can see the social consequences of the economic policy as a failure for Reagan Revolution
