Charisma is defined in the Merriam-Webster dictionary as "personal magic of leadership arousing particular loyalty or popular enthusiasm in a public figure" (Merriam-Webster Online ). Throughout history, successful public speaking has been a dominant trait of influential historical figures: compelling speakers use their charisma and charm to captivate their audiences and create a difference in society. Political figures use charisma to campaign and promote their own political ambitions. Every four years, a politician is elected president of the United States. Upon taking office, this politician recites an inaugural address outlining his plans for the presidency. On Tuesday, January 20, 1981, Ronald Reagan, known to history as the great communicator, delivered his highly influential inaugural address on the West Front of the Capitol. Using his charismatic abilities, Ronald Reagan recited an influential inaugural speech that resonated with the average American. His inaugural address highlighted his own political beliefs and restored the Republican Party to its former strength. Before that fateful day on the west side of the Capitol, the Republican Party had spent years in a sort of slumber. Since the Great Depression, Democrats have run Congress and, for most of that time, the presidency. According to George Tindall in America, after the Great Depression, the Republican Party lost much of its former strength because its agenda was similar to that of the Democrats. Political figures tried to change the Republican Party, but only Reagan succeeded (Tindall 1247). In the 1960s, conservatives began to worry that the Republican Party was being influenced by the "Eastern ... middle of paper ... online." March 14, 2009 Danzer, George A. “A Conservative Tide.” American Reconstruction in the 20th Century. 9th ed. 2002. English, Jane A. and Tomas D. Jones. “WWI, WWII, Korean War, Vietnam War.” Encyclopedia of the United States at War 1998. Reagan, Ronald. The Reagan Diaries. New York. Harper Collins Publishers, 2007. Reeves, Richard. President Reagan: Triumph of the imagination. New York: Simon and Schuster Publishers, 2005. Remini, Robert V. Fellow Citizens: The Penguin Book of US Presidential Inaugural Addresses. New York: Penguin Books Publisher, 2008. “Ronald Reagan: The Great Communicator.” CNN June 6, 2004. 1-3. February 8, 2009. Tindall, George Brown and David Emory Shi, “A Conservative Insurrection.” America. 7 ed.. 2007.