"My fellow Americans, I'm pleased to tell you today that I've signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. We begin bombing in five minutes," President Ronald Reagan joked. Unbeknownst to him, his microphone was on, and the comments were later leaked. In the midst of tense relations with the Soviet Union, as Gorbachev had not yet dissolved it into Russia, the thought of attacking the nation was very real to the public.
Reagan was known for his sense of humor and often used it to boost the attitudes of the crowds before which he gave speeches. His reputation as a jokester and his innate ability to communicate with the public was well known, but the topic of the Cold War and the Soviet Union was still a topic of great fear in American society.
Lana Harris / AP
3 comments:
Anonymous
said...
Reagan was a natural speaker and was very charismatic. However, this joke made him unprofessional to many voters since the US's relationship with the Soviet Union was still very tense.
Although Reagan was a skilled public speaker, he would occasionally make jokes that ran on the questionable side, especially when it came to Russia. Tensions were not especially helped by this joke, although he was able to use humor to an extent when actually talking with Gorbachev.
he was a very good public speaker but had times on where he would blank and didnt know what to say. When he would make jokes sometimes they would come off the wrong way and people would get confused
3 comments:
Reagan was a natural speaker and was very charismatic. However, this joke made him unprofessional to many voters since the US's relationship with the Soviet Union was still very tense.
Although Reagan was a skilled public speaker, he would occasionally make jokes that ran on the questionable side, especially when it came to Russia. Tensions were not especially helped by this joke, although he was able to use humor to an extent when actually talking with Gorbachev.
he was a very good public speaker but had times on where he would blank and didnt know what to say. When he would make jokes sometimes they would come off the wrong way and people would get confused
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