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Stephen Colbert confronts Ted Cruz about Ronald Reagan’s real legacy

Cruz and other conservatives don’t like to talk about these parts of Reagan’s presidency.

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Michelle Jaworski

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The Republican presidential candidates adore former President Ronald Reagan, even name-dropping him multiple times during last week’s presidential debates at his library. But Stephen Colbert is more than prepared to put Reagan’s not-so-modern-Republican side on full display.

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As Colbert reminded Monday night’s Late Show guest, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Reagan raised taxes and supported what Cruz would call an “amnesty” program for undocumented immigrants. Colbert pointed out to Cruz, a self-proclaimed Reagan fanboy, that these facts would bar Reagan from getting the GOP nomination today.

While Cruz focused more on the more GOP-friendly aspects of Reagan’s legacy—mainly that he also lowered taxes—Colbert tried to get him to answer one question: Would he, like his hero, be willing to compromise if his tax plans didn’t work?

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Politicians might be flocking to appear on The Late Show, but that doesn’t mean Colbert will always take it easy on them.

Screengrab via The Late Show with Stephen Colbert/YouTube

 
The Daily Dot