Find Reagan on this chart

[On the Road]

2. If the Question is About Mortgage Rate Trends,

Reagan had less to do with it than Carter, who appointed Paul Volcker to the Fed.

Double-digit inflation preceded Carter, of course, but it was Volcker who allowed interest rates to spike by controlling monetary growth and letting interest rates fluctuate. Once they peaked in 1981 and inflation began to subside due to less demand and lower oil prices, interest rates began to fall as well.

Reagan, of course, reappointed Volcker after he accomplished what many people thought was impossible -- namely, killing inflation while restoring economic growth. But that was a good reappointment.

I doubt labor or wages are key factors in this chart. The spike in interest rates in the late 70s was due to previous inflation caused by a long-term boom and the two oil shocks caused by OPEC and (in the second case) Iran. Fortunately, it led to a long period of sustained growth.