Eisenhower versus history (Dwight D. Eisenhower, presidency)

President Eisenhower's leadership has been looked at by academics in many different ways since the 1950s. When Eisenhower entered office, he was considered to be an able leader. As the Cold War intensified, thinkers thought he lacked the vigor to face the "modern" challenges and suffered by comparison to his immediate predecessors. During the 1960s historians thought of Eisenhower's lack of activism as a squandering of presidential power. After the tumult of the 1960s scholars began to appreciate the calm of the Eisenhower era. The release of archival evidence started the process of what would be known as "Eisenhower Revisionism." With the election of Ronald Reagan in 1980, the historiography became highly politicized. Passions of the Reagan era faded slightly, and historians sought to give Eisenhower an independent place in history. Future generation of historians will write of Eisenhower as a Founding Father of the modern era.