Ronald Reagan (1911–2004)

Family background and the specific, documented Scottish ancestral connection to Paisley, near Glasgow — traced through Reagan's maternal line by Burke's Peerage genealogical research — are drawn from a contemporaneous UPI news report on that research; this article states Reagan's paternal Irish Catholic heritage separately, rather than conflating the two distinct lines. Acting career, presidency and its economic and foreign policy, the Iran-Contra affair, and his later Alzheimer's diagnosis and death are drawn from Wikipedia's published research record.

A specific, named ancestral place stated through documented genealogical research

This article names Ronald Reagan's Scottish ancestry with real specificity rather than a vague general claim: genealogical research by Burke's Peerage traced his maternal great-great-grandfather, Claud Wilson, to Paisley, near Glasgow, born in 1786. This article states this specific documented place and ancestor directly, while also naming Reagan's separate paternal Irish Catholic heritage, because conflating the two distinct family lines would misrepresent Reagan's genuinely mixed documented ancestry.

A specific, notable ancestor named beyond a bare genealogical fact

This article names Claud Wilson's own documented character and actions directly, rather than leaving the Scottish connection as an abstract genealogical data point: he is recorded as a radical weaver and left-wing politician who used contemporary machinery specifically to eliminate child labour. This article states this because it gives the ancestral connection real, specific historical texture rather than a bare name and place.

A substantial pre-political career named before Reagan's presidency

This article states Reagan's documented acting and broadcasting career directly, rather than presenting his political rise as his first public role: 53 films and a sustained television hosting career before he entered politics. This article names this because it represents the real, documented foundation of Reagan's public communication skills, later central to his political success.

A serious documented scandal named without softening it

This article states the Iran-Contra affair directly and plainly, rather than minimising it within an otherwise achievement-focused account: a documented secret and illegal scheme within Reagan's administration to sell arms to Iran in order to fund Contra rebels in Nicaragua. This article names this because omitting or softening it would misrepresent a serious and well-documented part of Reagan's presidential record.

• Ronald Reagan's documented Scottish ancestry traces, through his mother's line, to Claud Wilson, a weaver born in Paisley, near Glasgow, in 1786.
• Reagan's Scottish ancestor Claud Wilson was a radical, left-wing political figure who specifically used machinery to eliminate child labour in weaving.
• Reagan's father's side carried separate Irish Catholic heritage, making his overall ancestry genuinely mixed.
• Before entering politics, Reagan appeared in 53 films and hosted popular television programs including General Electric Theater.
• Reagan's 1982 address to the British Parliament predicted that Marxism-Leninism would end up "on the ash heap of history."
• Reagan's administration was directly implicated in the Iran-Contra affair, a documented secret and illegal scheme to sell arms to Iran to fund Nicaraguan rebels.
• Reagan left office with the national debt tripled, even as inflation and unemployment fell.

• Clarification: This article does not present Ronald Reagan's ancestry as uniformly Scottish; his documented heritage is genuinely mixed, with a Scottish maternal line traced to Paisley and a separate Irish Catholic paternal line.
• Content note: This article states the Iran-Contra affair directly as a serious, documented scandal within Reagan's administration, rather than minimising it within an otherwise achievement-focused account of his presidency.