What Would Reagan Do?

There was an episode of radio show This American Life called “Kid Politics,” in whose first act Starlee Kine observes a class of elementary schoolers at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library as they performed a simplified reenactment of the decision making process behind the U.S.-led invasion of Grenada in 1983. The purpose of the exercise was to demonstrate how that President Reagan’s actions reflected the right and only choice.

In a similar vein, President Reagan’s son, Michael Reagan, is hosting What Would Reagan Do?, a new web series that purports to “take a look at the issues of the day and how his father Ronald Reagan set the tone for strong American Leadership.” The series is filmed from the Reagan Ranch Center in Santa Barbara, CA.

WWRD, a play on the acronym WWJD (meaning What Would Jesus Do?—the comparison does not seem to be tongue-in-cheek), is a part of RightChange

, an organization “committed to supporting policies and candidates dedicated to fiscal responsibility and a strong national security for the United States,” whose stated goal is “to counter the internet dominance by liberal and progressive groups.”

The series employs a device in which the celebration of Reagan’s past actions are used criticize current leadership. The latest episode, “Labor Unions,” compares the labor issue in Wisconsin to the air traffic controller walkout in 1981, during which President Reagan fired over 11,000 controllers. The previous and only other episode focuses on the escalating situation in Libya, and draws connections between the Reagan and Obama administrations.

For those of you upset by WWRD, don’t worry too much: despite the RightChange’s 642,000+ members, each video has clocked in fewer than 1,000 views on its YouTube channel.