Ronald Reagan I / 1981–1984
Start with 1980.
- First calendar-year GDP change
- +2.5%1980 annual level → 1981 annual level
- Unemployment baseline → endpoint
- 7.2% → 7.3%December 1980 → December 1984
PRESIDENT OVERVIEW / SELECTED EVIDENCE
Ronald Reagan.
The record in context.
40th president of the United States · Republican · 1981–1989
- 2completed economic terms
- 2diplomatic cases
- 2midterms
By POTUS RECORD · Published .
01 / 2 COMPLETED ECONOMIC TERMS
Growth, prices and unemployment.
Each term covers four calendar years, including the January handover. The lines below place each term among all 12 completed windows from 1977 to 2024; they show position on one measure, not an overall score.
Average annual real GDP growthArithmetic mean of four annual growth rates
Average annual inflationFour annual changes in annual-average CPI-U
Average unemployment rateMean of 48 monthly U-3 rates
| Measure | Ronald Reagan I1981–1984 | Ronald Reagan II1985–1988 |
|---|---|---|
| Average annual real GDP growthArithmetic mean of four annual growth rates | 3.1% | 3.8% |
| Average annual inflationFour annual changes in annual-average CPI-U | 6.0% | 3.3% |
| Average unemployment rateMean of 48 monthly U-3 rates | 8.6% | 6.5% |
| Cumulative real GDP changePrior annual level → final annual level | +12.9% | +16.2% |
| Cumulative consumer price changePrior December → final December | +22.0% | +14.4% |
| Unemployment rate change (percentage points)Prior December → final December | +0.1 | -2.0 |
Ronald Reagan II / 1985–1988
Start with 1984.
- First calendar-year GDP change
- +4.2%1984 annual level → 1985 annual level
- Unemployment baseline → endpoint
- 7.3% → 5.3%December 1984 → December 1988
The inherited baselines are annual or December observations, not inauguration-day measurements. Recessions, recoveries, the Federal Reserve, Congress, inherited policies and global events affect these outcomes. These windows do not isolate a president’s causal contribution.
GDP and CPI changes are cumulative, not annualized. U-3 measures the unemployed share of the labor force; it does not alone describe employment or participation.
The exact economic edition
Archived data edition v1 · Full comparison coverage: 1977–2024.
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis; republished by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis · GDPCASource update April 9, 2026. Annual real GDP, billions of chained 2017 dollars. Archived source update, not a claim to incorporate subsequent revisions. The original repository did not record an extraction date. Not seasonally adjusted.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · CUUR0000SA0Released September 11, 2026; extracted September 30, 2026. CPI-U, all items, U.S. city average. The release covers August 2026; this edition retains only observations needed for completed-term comparisons. Not seasonally adjusted.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · LNS14000000Released September 4, 2026; extracted October 1, 2026. U-3 civilian unemployment rate, age 16 years and over. The release covers August 2026; this edition retains historical observations through December 2024. Seasonally adjusted.
02 / DIPLOMACY & SECURITY
Goal, action, result and limits.
Selected case studies from the diplomacy comparison. Each case keeps its own historical window and review date; together they are not a total of diplomatic success.
1987–1988
Persian Gulf protection operations against Iranian military assets
Presidential after-action reports
Inherited and historical context. Naval protection operations during the Iran–Iraq War. These were attacks on Iranian military assets in the Persian Gulf, not inland nuclear-site strikes or an invasion of Iran. The stated rationale and immediate results below come from Reagan’s congressional notifications.
- Documented action
- Reagan’s reports describe the October 19, 1987 attack on the Rashadat platform and the April 18, 1988 attacks on the Sassan and Sirri platforms. The April operation also involved combat with Iranian boats, warships and aircraft. [1][2]
- Established result
- The President reported that U.S. forces destroyed the Rashadat platform, neutralized Sassan and Sirri, and severely damaged or sank Iranian vessels. These are dated executive after-action accounts; they do not establish a permanent end to the Iranian threat. [1][2]
- Limits and open questions
- The mine strike preceding the April operation injured ten U.S. service members. Reagan’s April 19 letter reported a U.S. helicopter with two men missing and a search still underway. It does not establish their final status or a complete casualty total, and U.S. forces remained ready for further action. [2]
Underlying source review: .
Read the full case1987–1991; treaty lapse in 2019
INF missile-elimination treaty
Treaty effective · missiles eliminated · treaty lapsed (2019)
Inherited and historical context. Reagan-era agreement; Soviet participation, U.S.–Soviet ratification, and George H. W. Bush-era implementation all contributed. Historically implemented; treaty lapsed August 2, 2019. It must not be presented as a currently operating treaty.
- Documented action
- The United States and Soviet Union signed the INF Treaty on December 8, 1987; it entered into force on June 1, 1988. [3][4]
- Established result
- The covered missile systems were eliminated by May 1991. CRS reports the Soviet Union destroyed 1,846 missiles and the United States 846. Final elimination occurred under George H. W. Bush after Reagan’s presidency. [4][3]
- Limits and open questions
- The ban covered land-based missiles with ranges of 500–5,500 km, not sea- or air-delivered missiles; warheads and guidance systems were not required to be destroyed. Verification and later compliance disputes limited durability. The United States implemented withdrawal and the treaty lapsed on August 2, 2019. [4][3]
Underlying source review: .
Read the full case03 / MIDTERM ELECTIONS
Seats and control at midterm.
House change counts the president’s party seats in the initial-election divisions before and after the midterm, from the reviewed 1934–2022 edition.
| Midterm | House seats | House control | Senate control |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982First term | −26 | No majority before or after | Retained majority |
| 1986Second term | −4 | No majority before or after | Lost majority |
04 / SOURCES & COVERAGE LIMITS
What this overview leaves open.
This is a selected reading across existing collections, not a complete biography or an audit of the presidency. Each record keeps its original review date; November 3, 2026 is this page’s editorial date, not a fresh review of every source. The number of included records measures coverage, not success.
Diplomacy source register
- Letter to congressional leaders on the United States reprisal against Iran
President Ronald Reagan; Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, National Archives repository
Presidential congressional notification · Published October 20, 1987 · Reviewed October 6, 2026
Read: Paragraphs beginning “At approximately 7:00 a.m.” and “United States forces have returned”: October 19 Rashadat platform attack, location in international waters, reported destruction and continued readiness. The President’s account and stated rationale are attributed claims.
- Letter to congressional leaders on the United States military strike in the Persian Gulf
President Ronald Reagan; Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, National Archives repository
Presidential congressional notification · Published April 19, 1988 · Reviewed October 6, 2026
Read: USS Samuel B. Roberts mine strike; April 18 Sassan and Sirri platform attacks; subsequent Iranian-vessel engagements; missing AH-1 helicopter. Ten injuries preceded the April 18 operation; the two helicopter crew were still missing at this document’s cutoff.
- Arms Control and Nonproliferation: A Catalog of Treaties and Agreements
Congressional Research Service (CRS), Library of Congress
official government retrospective research · Published March 26, 2020 · Reviewed October 6, 2026
Read: The Early Years: SALT I and SALT II, printed p.5 ; Interim Agreement on Offensive Arms, printed p.5 ; Interim Agreement on Offensive Arms, printed p.6 ; The ABM Treaty, printed p.7 ; Ballistic Missile Defenses and the ABM Treaty, printed p.15 ; The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, printed pp.7–8
- Russian Compliance with the Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty: Background and Issues for Congress
Congressional Research Service (CRS), Library of Congress
official government retrospective research · Published June 27, 2019 · Reviewed October 6, 2026
Read: INF negotiations, printed p.14 (PDF p.17) ; The INF Treaty, printed p.14 (PDF p.17) ; Summary
Editorial synthesis by POTUS RECORD · Report a correction with the page and official source.