ABSTRACT
The key to Reagan's regulatory policy was a three-pronged attack, consisting of a regulatory rollback, budget cuts, and the appointment of key personnel dedicated to the Reagan philosophy of "getting the government off the backs of the people." Indeed, it took a conservative President turning activist to put the brakes on regulation, using the most potent instruments of presidential power: budget, personnel, and executive fiat The results were manifest well before the end of the first year of the Reagan presidency. President Carter's experience showed why previous Presidents had shunned blatant, overt intervention in the regulatory process, and had limited themselves to behind-the-scenes maneuvering. As a management system, Regulatory Council and the Regulatory Analysis Review Group incorporated many commendable features. As inflation began to rise, along with congressional pressure, President Gerald Ford redirected regulatory management from an environmental to an economic focus, a pattern that was to continue under President Carter.
