Ryan ONeill

Detailed Outline

Purpose: To inform and educate the masses on the fundamentals of Reaganomics

and the benefits and negatives it provides to the middle class over short and long

time periods.

Thesis: Reaganomics may provide short term economic benefits to the middle

class, however, this is unclear due to the patterns of business cycles that take place

in the American economy. Long term, the outcomes of Reaganomics were mainly

negative, turning the United States from the credit nation it once was into the

debtor nation it is today.

A. Argument 1: Reaganomics does not provide the economic growth it promises

(Laffer Curve)
a. Discuss Laffer Curve
i. Lower taxes = greater economic growth will actually increase

tax revenue
b. Lowered Government Spending
i. Reagan under his administration actually increased spending
c. Growth throughout the 1980s
i. Result of business cycle and explosion of 1970 recession
1. (Housing market increase, global oil price stabilization,

etc.)
d. Argument one will help me prove the thesis because it addresses the

fact that while Reaganomics had some short term benefits, it certainly

did not have the benefits it was promised

B. Short term economic benefits/expectations (Thesis)
C. Argument 2: Reaganomics has negative long term outcomes
a. Debtor Nation
i. Reagan turned the nation from a nation of creditors (loaning),

into a nation of debtors (borrowing)

 b. National Debt
i. The national debt has grown almost every year since Reagans

administration
1. The United States is still paying down the debt
c. Long term affects negative (Thesis)
D. Argument 3: Business Cycles throughout the 1900s
a. Jimmy Carter had one of the worst economic recessions since the

1930s during his administration

b. Unstable housing prices, inflation, interest rates, gas prices
i. Gas prices recovered in 1980, which was beneficial to the

Reagan administration economically

ii. A look at business cycles also shows why we should not be impressed

by the 7.5% growth in 1983, the year of the rebound. (Sherman)

c. David Stockman, Director for the Office of Management and Budget

i. There was nothing new, revolutionary, or sustainable about

[the growth of 1983-89]. The cycle of boom and bust had been

going on for decades and ...its oscillations had reached the high

end of the charts. That was all. (2006)

1. Typically the quickest rebounds after a recession are the

few years after the recession ends

d. Paul Volcker

i. Slashes interest rates below 6%

1. Interest rates were previously at points up to 18.5%, this

crushed home sales and mortgages plummeted

E. Unclear due to business cycles (Thesis)

F. Expectations

a. Previously in a recession so expectations were already great for the

new president Reagan

b. Promised to cut taxes, cut spending, and balance the budget

 c. After promising to balance the budget, shortly after went to the house

to raise debt limits

d. Tax Cuts of 1981 actually did not cut taxes for most of the middle

class

i. The only tax cuts were for the highest tax brackets

ii. Taxes increased year after year after 1981

G. Credit to Debtor Nation (Thesis)