--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Ronald Reagan knew audiences. It was a…" description: "\"Ronald Reagan knew audiences. It was a key element of his political genius. One of the things at which brilliant politicians are better than mediocre o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64b/rick-perlstein-3637_audiences_ronald-reagan-knew-audiences-it-was-a-ke_527384.png" --- # Ronald Reagan knew audiences. It was a key element of his… ![“Ronald Reagan knew audiences. It was a key element of his political genius. One of the things at which brilliant politicians are better than mediocre ones is smelling new public concerns over the horizon before they are picked up by polls - before the public even knows to call them 'issues' at all.” quote by Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64b/rick-perlstein-3637_audiences_ronald-reagan-knew-audiences-it-was-a-ke_527384.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64b/rick-perlstein-3637_audiences_ronald-reagan-knew-audiences-it-was-a-ke_527384.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64b/rick-perlstein-3637_audiences_ronald-reagan-knew-audiences-it-was-a-ke_527384.png) > “Ronald Reagan knew audiences. It was a key element of his political genius. One of the things at which brilliant politicians are better than mediocre ones is smelling new public concerns over the horizon before they are picked up by polls - before the public even knows to call them 'issues' at all.” [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Effective politicians anticipate emerging concerns before the public labels them, shaping discourse proactively. **In simple terms:** Good leaders see issues early. Key Takeaway Monitor trends to guide policy. Themes politics leadership foresight Mood analytical strategic Type political historical When to use this quote - campaign planning - media analysis - policy development Key Concepts public opinion agenda setting strategic communication Questions to Reflect On - How do you identify genuine emerging issues? - What risks arise from acting on untested concerns? A Different Perspective Predicting trends can be speculative and costly. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Audiences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/audiences/) [Before](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/before/) [Better](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better/) [Brilliant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brilliant/) [Brilliant Politicians](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brilliant-politicians-4438825/) [Call](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/call/) [Concerns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concerns/) [Element](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/element/) [Even](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/even/) [Genius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genius/) [His](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/his/) [Horizon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horizon/) [Issues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/issues/) [Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/key/) [Knew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knew/) [Knew Audiences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knew-audiences-4438824/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Mediocre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mediocre/) [New](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new/) [Over](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/over/) [Picked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/picked/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Politicians](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politicians/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Polls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/polls/) [Public](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public/) [Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reagan/) [Reagan Knew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reagan-knew-864459/) [Ronald reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ronald-reagan/) [Smelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smelling/) [Than](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/than/) [Them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/them/) [Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things/) [Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trump/) [Up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/up/) [Which](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/which/) ## Related quotes > [... Michael Bloomfields' musical understanding was broad and deep, and he knew how to turn that understanding into communication .. his influence was phenomenal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-naftalin/michael-bloomfields-musical-understanding-was-broad-and-deep-and-he/) [Mark Naftalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-naftalin/) > [Many writers were picked on as children. Why? Because they were weird from the get-go. They were often to be found at the back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-o-neill/many-writers-were-picked-on-as-children-why-because-they-were-weird/) [Heather O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-o-neill/) > [What did Bush do on 9/11? He ran away and hid. Even Reagan knew more about leadership than that, and he was as bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-clooney/what-did-bush-do-on-9-11-he-ran-away-and-hid-even-reagan-knew-more/) [George Clooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-clooney/) > [Ronald Reagan knew his own mind. He had firm principles - and, I believe, right ones. He expounded them clearly, he acted upon them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/ronald-reagan-knew-his-own-mind-he-had-firm-principles-and-i-believe/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [The rule for effective governance is simple. It is one Ronald Reagan knew by heart. And one that he successfully employed with Social Security…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-christie/the-rule-for-effective-governance-is-simple-it-is-one-ronald-reagan/) [Chris Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-christie/) > [Ronald Reagan knew who he was. Barack Obama is still working through that equation politically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-scarborough/ronald-reagan-knew-who-he-was-barack-obama-is-still-working-through/) [Joe Scarborough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-scarborough/) > [Seducing him in the tub smelling of vinegar was out of the question. There had to be some boundaries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilona-andrews/seducing-him-in-the-tub-smelling-of-vinegar-was-out-of-the-question/) [Ilona Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilona-andrews/) > [When I played for the Steelers and I got my bell rung, I'd take smelling salts and go right back out there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-bradshaw/when-i-played-for-the-steelers-and-i-got-my-bell-rung-i-d-take/) [Terry Bradshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-bradshaw/) > [“We talk a lot about the five senses: vision, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. I would add one more…imagination.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-adamson/we-talk-a-lot-about-the-five-senses-vision-hearing-smell-taste-and/) [Wes Adamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-adamson/) > [Its Ludacris 'Mr. Slay-A-Bitch.' Unless that p-ssy is smelling like a Filet-O-Fish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludacris/its-ludacris-mr-slay-a-bitch-unless-that-p-ssy-is-smelling-like-a/) [Ludacris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludacris/) > [“Now I sense the perfume of flowers like seeing a new thing. I know they smell just as well as I know I existed.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-caeiro/now-i-sense-the-perfume-of-flowers-like-seeing-a-new-thing-i-know/) [Alberto Caeiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alberto-caeiro/) > [“I bear no shame in smelling books.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-lynn-cupino/i-bear-no-shame-in-smelling-books/) [K. Lynn Cupino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-lynn-cupino/) > [“Your hair smells like wind, did you know that?" Yep, me and Tucker, smelling each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-hand/your-hair-smells-like-wind-did-you-know-that-yep-me-and-tucker/) [Cynthia Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-hand/) > [“When you walk with trash, you end up smelling the same.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-liccione/when-you-walk-with-trash-you-end-up-smelling-the-same/) [Anthony Liccione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-liccione/) > [Im eating a Chop Suey dish and hanging with a very teen smelling friend. And for some reason, I have this strange need of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ignas-kardas/im-eating-a-chop-suey-dish-and-hanging-with-a-very-teen-smelling/) [Ignas Kardas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ignas-kardas/) ## More by Rick Perlstein > [I love trade magazines - any trade's magazine: by entering into what is taken for granted in a world not your own, you better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/i-love-trade-magazines-any-trade-s-magazine-by-entering-into-what-is/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [When the 2008 victory of Barack Obama and the defeat of grumpy old John McCain began looking, um, inevitable, I started fielding inquiries about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/when-the-2008-victory-of-barack-obama-and-the-defeat-of-grumpy-old/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [Watergate got us to think of leaders as mere mortals. America began to think of itself in a very different way - I would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/watergate-got-us-to-think-of-leaders-as-mere-mortals-america-began-to/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [Part of the fantasy certain pro-reform Republicans like to broadcast about Hispanics, family-oriented, churchgoing traditionalists, is that they are somehow natural conservatives, just waiting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/part-of-the-fantasy-certain-pro-reform-republicans-like-to-broadcast/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [I'm just a Bolshevik with a laptop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/i-m-just-a-bolshevik-with-a-laptop/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [The history of American higher education over the twentieth century is an extraordinary one, the story of the creation of a powerhouse set of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/the-history-of-american-higher-education-over-the-twentieth-century/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [The only times during my religious instruction I remember hearing God's name invoked with any sincere conviction at all was in the oft-repeated and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/the-only-times-during-my-religious-instruction-i-remember-hearing-god/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [As a general rule of thumb, Democrats do better in national elections when the year's defining issue is economic fairness, and Republicans do better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/as-a-general-rule-of-thumb-democrats-do-better-in-national-elections/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [Computers have cut-and-paste functions. So does right-wing historical memory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/computers-have-cut-and-paste-functions-so-does-right-wing-historical/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [Empirical debunking cannot reach the deepest fear of the reactionary mind, which is that the state - that devouring leviathan - will soon swallow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/empirical-debunking-cannot-reach-the-deepest-fear-of-the-reactionary/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [I think that all politicians who aspire to the presidency are a little nuts, but for different reasons. What kind of person aspires to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/i-think-that-all-politicians-who-aspire-to-the-presidency-are-a/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [Chicago's privatization mania began during Mayor Richard M. Daley's administration, which ran from 1989 to 2011. Under his successor, Rahm Emanuel, the trend has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/chicago-s-privatization-mania-began-during-mayor-richard-m-daley-s/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [One thing Republicans understand: In American elections, you have to choose from among only two people - not between the perfect and the good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/one-thing-republicans-understand-in-american-elections-you-have-to/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [Social conservatism, business conservatism: the one side constitutes the other, like some infernal Mobius strip.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/social-conservatism-business-conservatism-the-one-side-constitutes/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [Sometimes I like to think that the responsibility of every new generation of Democrats is to devise a program that mints new Democrats for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/sometimes-i-like-to-think-that-the-responsibility-of-every-new/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) [Explore all 125 Rick Perlstein quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) ## More Audiences quotes > [Audiences deserve better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-maltin/audiences-deserve-better/) [Leonard Maltin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-maltin/) > [Well, the coffeehouse audiences never know what they're going to get, and all the comics are different, as opposed to when you go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-griffin/well-the-coffeehouse-audiences-never-know-what-they-re-going-to-get/) [Kathy Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-griffin/) > [The States still has the best audiences by far.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-trower/the-states-still-has-the-best-audiences-by-far/) [Robin Trower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-trower/) > [Audiences could never relate to me as anything other than Tori Spelling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tori-spelling/audiences-could-never-relate-to-me-as-anything-other-than-tori/) [Tori Spelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tori-spelling/) > [I think audiences are quite sophisticated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-ramsay/i-think-audiences-are-quite-sophisticated/) [Lynne Ramsay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-ramsay/) > [Audience members are only concerned about the story, the concept, the bells and whistles and the noise that a popular film starts to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-spielberg/audience-members-are-only-concerned-about-the-story-the-concept-the/) [Steven Spielberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-spielberg/) > [I have zero interest in performing in films to try to convey any kind of message. My job is to be entertaining. There's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-willis/i-have-zero-interest-in-performing-in-films-to-try-to-convey-any-kind/) [Bruce Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-willis/) > [Audiences want and need a shared viewing experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-littlefield/audiences-want-and-need-a-shared-viewing-experience/) [Warren Littlefield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-littlefield/) > [I want audiences to see me in different avatars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-charan/i-want-audiences-to-see-me-in-different-avatars/) [Ram Charan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-charan/) > [With comedy, the jokes will come out, and people will see them coming. Changes in daily life or current events can change the consciousness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lopez/with-comedy-the-jokes-will-come-out-and-people-will-see-them-coming/) [Robert Lopez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lopez/) > [Audiences want great story telling; it's why white people watch my show 'Black in America.' It's why black people watch 'Latina in America.' All…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soledad-o-brien/audiences-want-great-story-telling-it-s-why-white-people-watch-my/) [Soledad O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soledad-o-brien/) > [I am deeply honored that my team is being recognized by H.S.H. Prince Albert II and the Festival de Television de Monte-Carlo for Disney/ABC's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sweeney/i-am-deeply-honored-that-my-team-is-being-recognized-by-h-s-h-prince/) [Anne Sweeney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sweeney/) > [My audience loves seeing me pump large amounts of money into action and sets. And it works. I'm not saying that films made within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rohit-shetty/my-audience-loves-seeing-me-pump-large-amounts-of-money-into-action/) [Rohit Shetty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rohit-shetty/) > [We're making a commercial Hindi film catering to all types of audiences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanjay-dutt/we-re-making-a-commercial-hindi-film-catering-to-all-types-of/) [Sanjay Dutt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanjay-dutt/) > [Sometimes audiences want to see what we're doing to their world. It's our obligation sometimes to reflect it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-sheridan/sometimes-audiences-want-to-see-what-we-re-doing-to-their-world-it-s/) [Taylor Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-sheridan/) [Browse all 551 Audiences quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/audiences/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Ronald Reagan knew audiences. 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