American Notes Tax

On a sunny morning last week, Ronald Reagan strode jauntily onto the White House lawn. Surrounded by politicians looking to share credit and camera angles, the President picked up the first of two dozen pens -- one for each letter of his name so as to maximize the number of souvenirs -- and signed the Tax Reform Act of 1986. But when those around him saw his handiwork, there was a burst of laughter. "I was in such a hurry," Reagan confessed, "I wrote my last name first." The President remedied the slip by squeezing in a cramped Ronald in front of Reagan.