Gaffe-prone but always quick to joke

Published on Monday 7 June 2004 03:30

RONALD Reagan was famous for his gaffes and often put his foot in it with spectacular results. His most infamous error came in 1984, at the height of the Cold War.

He said: "My fellow Americans, I am pleased to tell you I just signed legislation which outlaws Russia forever. The bombing begins in five minutes." He was joking around in a voice-level test before broadcast, but it turned out the microphone was still on.

Reagan was often portrayed as a stupid man, but he was a keen humorist and sometimes it was hard to tell which of his remarks were jokes and which were gaffes.

His assertion that "trees cause more pollution than automobiles" may have been seriously meant - it caused outrage among green groups.

He also reportedly said: "All the waste in a year from a nuclear power plant can be stored under a desk."

Asked by a reporter in 1966 what kind of governor he would be, the former B-movie actor is said to have replied: "I don’t know. I’ve never played a governor."

And he was presumably deliberately joking - and playing on his reputation as a leader happy to delegate and take it easy - when he said: "They say hard work never hurt anybody, but, I figure, why take the chance?"

And his intention may have been similar when he said: "I am not worried about the deficit. It is big enough to take care of itself."

And again when he quipped: "I have left orders to be awakened at any time in case of national emergency - even if I’m in a cabinet meeting."

But some of his gaffes certainly were slips of the tongue, such as: "We are trying to get unemployment to go up, and I think we’re going to succeed."

Some of his quotes were memorable and showed genuine wit.

"Government is just like a big baby - an alimentary canal with a big appetite at one end and no responsibility at the other," he said in 1965.

He was scathing about one of his pet hates - big government. In December 1972, he said: "Government does not solve problems. It subsidises them", while he said, in 1986, during his presidency: "The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help’."

Even after he had left the White House, he was able to score points against the Democrats, saying of Bill Clinton at the Republican convention in 1992: "When you see all that rhetorical smoke billowing up from the Democrats, well, ladies and gentleman, I’d follow the example of their nominee: don’t inhale".