Magazine content is available exclusively for TIME subscribers.Election '84: Campaign Snapshots: Crushed Geraniums and Gay Caucuses
Ronald Reagan's greatest asset is his charm—something that flows naturally from him but that he can wield as effectively as a sharp rapier. I watched him charm a dinner table in June this year, a mixed group that included the coach of football's Dallas Cowboys and a Hollywood magnate as well as the guest of honor, Madame Jayewardene, wife of the President of Sri Lanka. She was very shy and ill at ease, but President Reagan, though tired from a day's travel, quickly sensed her anxiety and took it upon himself to entertain her....
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