Question

Difficulty: EasyReaganomics and Domestic Policy under Reagan and Bush

"Our tax proposal is for a 25-percent across-the-board reduction in personal income tax rates over the next three years... The second part of our proposal is geared to the economy's supply side—to encouraging business investment, which in turn will create new jobs."
— President Ronald Reagan, Address to the Nation on Federal Tax Reduction Legislation, July 27, 1981

Which of the following economic policies is most directly associated with the goals described in the excerpt?

  1. A
    Increasing federal spending on social welfare programs to boost consumer demand
  2. B
    Expanding federal regulations on businesses to protect consumer safety
  3. Cutting tax rates on corporations and individuals to stimulate private investmentAnswer
  4. D
    Establishing new federal job-creation programs modeled after the New Deal

Answer

Cutting tax rates on corporations and individuals to stimulate private investment
The correct answer is correct because cutting tax rates on corporations and individuals was the central mechanism of supply-side economics (Reaganomics) aimed at stimulating private investment, creating jobs, and encouraging economic growth.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the stimulus to identify the central economic policy proposed.
The excerpt focuses on a 25-percent across-the-board reduction in personal income tax rates and encouraging business investment to create jobs (supply-side economics).
Understanding the core text is necessary to align it with historical policies.
2
Match the policy goals in the excerpt to the correct economic policy option.
The policy of cutting tax rates on corporations and individuals to stimulate investment matches the supply-side goals described by Reagan.
This identifies the correct option based on the analysis of the stimulus.

Key Concept

Reaganomics and supply-side economics
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