Wrong-o. McCain tried to do just that an lost. Reagan was a conservative and won by a landslide.
Reagan won because he was preaching against the commie menace and for fiscal responsibility. His economic message was what got him elected.
When he said "Government is not the solution to our problems; government is the problem." he was not favoring social conservatism. He was a fiscal conservative first and foremost.
Social conservatism was a distant third for him.
Here is a little education on Reagan for you. (so many seem so quick to proclaim what Reagan believed or wanted.)
From
http://www.rightpundits.com/?p=1111
"Ronald Reagan never lost sight of the big picture, and he did not swoop down like a policy wonk on any particular issue. The conservative greatness of Ronald Reagan has less to do with his specific policy record than with his optimistic economic message and his foreign policy legacy. He defeated communism by steadfast determination which earns him a large chapter in the annals of history.
There is an alarming tendency these days for people desiring a “conservative” label to ascribe beliefs to Ronald Reagan which he did not share or promote. Radio entertainer Sean Hannity has a ridiculous segment on his program called “What would Reagan Do?” In it, he ascribes all of Hannity’s own beliefs to Ronald Reagan, thus defining conservatism in his own image.
The funny thing is nobody has heard Sean Hannity talking about the size and scope of the federal government, which was THE core conservative message of Ronald Reagan. Hannity applauded deficit spending, made excuses for the ‘No Child Left Behind Act’ and pretends now that Reagan would oppose an amnesty bill. (Reagan supported and signed an amnesty bill.)
Hannity isn’t the only one. WE ALL want Ronald Reagan back but we forget why. We project our version of conservatism on the current crop of candidates and come away disappointed. “None of them are Reagan” we think, as we recite a laundry list of issues that this or that candidate is at odds with today’s talk radio conservatives. We think we know what Reagan would do.
The thing is we don’t have to guess about Ronald Reagan. We have his record as both governor of California and President of the United States. We know what Reagan would do today because we know what he did then.
In truth, Reagan governed from the middle like all presidents try to do. And in doing so, his record would in many ways alarm talk radio conservatives today.
He was a “green” governor of California, still earning platitudes from the environmentalists in the state. As president, his pen stroked giant swaths of land into the national park system, something that fellow conservative Barry Goldwater also championed. So what would Reagan do on tree hugging environmental issues? Not a priority to him, but his record is a mixed bag at best.
As president, he presided over a large increase in the federal government. He did not steal our local power as much as George Bush, but he steered far away from the conservative ideal.
He did not talk much about social issues, making them a distant 3rd priority never acted upon during his administration. In fact, given three chances on the Supreme Court he appointed only one conservative. If Sanda Day O’Conner had not been put on the bench by Ronald Reagan, the immorality of affirmative action practices would have been forever banned three years ago.
He cut taxes. That was good, but he associated them with corresponding budget reductions, something he challenged congress to enact. Those phantom budget reductions never happened on his watch.
What Ronald Reagan DID was give people confidence in America again. He defeated communism, assuring the ascension of America as the only superpower in the world. He forcefully talked up small government, free-market conservative economic values, but he did not deliver on them. And he whispered about social issues we care about, but his policy inaction and bench appointments confirm that social conservatism was not his cup of tea.
So what would Ronald Reagan do today?
I hope he would remind us of his optimistic resonating conservative message, a message we have clearly forgotten. And I think he would tell the various factions in the Republican party to shut up about the tiny nuances of our wonkish pet policies.
He would surely remind everyone of his 11th commandment: “thou shalt not speak evil of fellow Republicans.” That was another part of Reagan’s legacy that today’s conservatives forget.
You see, Ronald Reagan understood that conservative ideology transcends the particulars. He realized that conservatism is a broad appeal when appealed broadly. "
