00                      SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 4                                                                     
01 Honoring President Reagan on the 100th anniversary of his birth.                                                        
02 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
03       WHEREAS Ronald Wilson Reagan, a man of humble background, worked                                                
04 throughout his life to serve freedom and to advance the public good; and                                                
05       WHEREAS Ronald Reagan served with honor and distinction as a union leader, as a                                 
06 member of the armed forces of the United States, as Governor of California, and, for two                                
07 terms, as the President of the United States; and                                                                       
08       WHEREAS, in 1981, when Ronald Reagan was inaugurated as President of the                                      
09 United States, he inherited a disillusioned nation shackled by rampant inflation and high                               
10 unemployment; and                                                                                                       
11       WHEREAS, during his Presidential term, Ronald Reagan led a bipartisan effort to                               
12 enact a bold agenda of restoring accountability and common sense to the government, which                               
13 led to unprecedented economic growth and opportunity for millions of Americans; and                                     
14       WHEREAS President Reagan's commitment to the armed forces of the United States                                  
15 contributed to the restoration of pride in America and its values and prepared the armed forces                         
16 to meet the challenges of the 21st century; and                                                                         

01       WHEREAS President Reagan's vision of "peace through strength" led to the end of                                 
02 the Cold War and the eventual demise of the Soviet Union, guaranteeing basic human rights                               
03 for millions of people; and                                                                                             
04       WHEREAS President Reagan's leadership and foreign policy expanded the scope of                                  
05 democracy and freedom in the Middle East, Europe, the Caribbean, and Central America; and                               
06       WHEREAS President Reagan laid the groundwork for the reunification of Germany                                   
07 and the destruction of the Berlin Wall; and                                                                             
08       WHEREAS President Reagan signed the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty                                    
09 between the United States and the Soviet Union, establishing the framework for the Strategic                            
10 Arms Reduction Treaty and the reduction in the number of nuclear warheads the two super                                 
11 power nations had primed for launch; and                                                                                
12       WHEREAS President Reagan advanced equality for women by appointing Sandra                                       
13 Day O'Connor, as the first woman Justice of the United States Supreme Court; and                                        
14       WHEREAS, throughout his presidency, Ronald Reagan advocated limiting federal                                  
15 control over the land and natural resources of Alaska; and                                                              
16       WHEREAS, in 1983, President Reagan signed into law the Alaska Railroad Transfer                               
17 Act, transferring ownership of the Alaska Railroad to the state; and                                                    
18       WHEREAS, in 1984, President Reagan met with Pope John Paul II in Fairbanks to                                 
19 discuss pressing world issues; and                                                                                      
20       WHEREAS President Reagan signed legislation that authorized the payment of                                      
21 reparations to the Aleuts who had been displaced from their homes and sent to internment                                
22 camps, known as "duration villages," during World War II; and                                                           
23       WHEREAS President Reagan supported the Village Built Clinic Program, which                                      
24 funded Indian Health Service clinics in Alaska Native villages throughout the state and                                 
25 brought basic health care to many Alaskans; and                                                                         
26       WHEREAS President Reagan authorized the establishment of the federal government                                 
27 8(a) Business Development Program, which brought economic development and benefits to                                   
28 Alaska Native Corporations; and                                                                                         
29       WHEREAS February 6, 2011, is the 100th anniversary of Ronald Reagan's birth and                                 
30 the seventh since his death;                                                                                            
31       BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature recognizes and honors                                          

01 President Ronald Reagan on the 100th anniversary of his birth for his accomplishments in                                
02 service to his country, to Alaska, and to the whole world.                                                              
03       COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Lisa Murkowski and the                                 
04 Honorable Mark Begich, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative,                                 
05 members of the Alaska delegation in Congress; former first lady Nancy Reagan; and the                                   
06 Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Library.