The Living Ronald Reagan

The only portions of yesterday's ReaganFest that I watched were the two Bushes' eulogies (actually only parts of them) and a little bit of the internment ceremony. I had the TV on for the latter but with the sound turned down until I noticed that Reagan's children were speaking.

Because I recently posted here about my memories of my own father, I wanted to hear what Patti and Ron had to say about theirs. I appreciated the stories that both of them told -- memories of a man they knew outside the realm of politics.

I'd read Patti Davis' recent comments on her father as well as a Salon interview with Ron from about a year ago. Patti stuck to the personal aspect of her relationship, with much to say about Alzheimers. Ron, on the other hand, took a swipe at the current administration:

"Yes, some of the current policies are an extension of the '80s. But the overall thrust of this administration is not my father's -- these people are overly reaching, overly aggressive, overly secretive, and just plain corrupt. I don't trust these people."

So, I suppose it comes as no surprise that in his eulogy last night, he included:

Dad was also a deeply, unabashedly religious man. But he never made the fatal mistake of so many politicians, wearing his faith on his sleeve to gain political advantage. True, after he was shot and nearly killed early in his presidency, he came to believe that God had spared him in order that he might do good. But he accepted that as a responsibility, not a mandate. And there is a profound difference.

There was no commentary on the event on ABC immediately afterwards (although I wouldn't have watched it anyway), but I wonder if any mention was made by all of the pundits afterwards. I wonder if any of them dared to draw anyone's attention to it in fear of wrecking the canonization.