On your digression. Reagan inherited a much less sever recession and turned it into the 2nd biggest recession since WWII. He is also the father of all the financial deregulation that has put us where we are.
The Glass-Steagall regulatory provisions that were changed, and signed by President Clinton, was the Gramm-Leach-Bailey (all Republicans). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gramm-Leach-Bliley_Act To blame it all on Reagan is an over-reach of reasoning. Also, Obama did not inherit 21 % interest rates and 13% inflation with no job growth. Reagan also inherited a Middle East Crisis (the Iranian Islamic revolt and the hostage crisis) and a declining economy. The term "worst recession since the Great Depression" is "sound byte" jargon and an over-reach as well. Reagan also had created 7 million jobs, without corresponding declines in the structural labor force, by the end of his third year of the Presidency. There are business cycles, and almost every president has one; even Bill Clinton had a recession by the year 2000; then we had 9-11.
Just said he was the father of financial deregulation didn't blame him for everything bad that ever happened, planted the seeds for S&L and some other bank misery. The 1st Reagan Recession was the 2nd biggest recession since the great depression (just a fact didn't even say worst since the great depression but it was until the latest). It wasn't going to be the worst until he got his hands on it (until Volcker got his hands on it actually), it had nothing to do with the business cycle (or almost nothing). Thanks for the business cycle reminder but I hadn't forgotten that they exist. I'm a big fan of Schumpeter, so the business cycle is near and dear to my heart.