Not to be confused with Tony Dolan.

Anthony Rossi Dolan (July 7, 1948 – March 10[1] or 11,[2] 2025) was an American journalist and speechwriter who wrote for President Ronald Reagan from March 1981 until the end of Reagan's second term in 1989.[3] Dolan served as the Director of Special Research and Issues and in the Office of Research and Policy at the Headquarters of the Reagan-Bush Committee. He continued to advise Republican candidates and presidential administrations throughout the remainder of his life.

Background

Anthony Rossi Dolan was born to a Catholic family in Norwalk, Connecticut, on July 7, 1948.[2] He was active in Republican politics from an early age.[2] Dolan was educated at Fairfield College Preparatory School and Yale University.[2] He also served in the United States Army.[2]

Career

After a few years in politics, including as a press secretary for James L. Buckley during the 1970 United States Senate election in New York, Dolan returned to Connecticut and went into journalism, writing for the The Stamford Advocate.[2] He won the 1978 Pulitzer Prize for Local Investigative Specialized Reporting[3] for a series of articles on municipal corruption published in The Advocate.[2] He left the paper upon joining the Reagan administration, where he remained for nearly the entirely of the Reagan presidency.[2] As speechwriter, he wrote the speeches "Ash Heap of History" (1982) and "Evil Empire" (1983).[4][5]

During the presidency of President George W. Bush, Dolan served as Senior Advisor in the office of Secretary of State (December 2000 to July 2001) and Special Advisor in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (August 2001 to December 2007). He remained active in politics until the end of his life, and was named to advise the United States Domestic Policy Council during the second presidency of Donald Trump in January 2025.[2]

Under the name Tony Dolan he had been, for a time, a conservative folk-singer who put out the album "Cry, The Beloved Country" and appeared on The Merv Griffin Show.[6][7]

Personal life and death

Dolan was a devout Catholic.[2] His late brother Terry Dolan was co-founder and chairman of the National Conservative Political Action Committee (NCPAC).[8]

Dolan died at a hospital in Alexandria, Virginia, on March 11, 2025, at the age of 76.[1][2]

Notes

  1. ^ a b Quackenbush, Rachel (March 17, 2025). "Catholic writer of Reagan's iconic 'Evil Empire' speech dies at 77". Catholic Vote. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Roberts, Sam (March 18, 2025). "Anthony Dolan, Speechwriter Who Gave Reagan 'Evil Empire,' Dies at 76". The New York Times. Retrieved March 18, 2025.
  3. ^ a b Appointment of Anthony R. Dolan as Special Assistant to the President and Chief Speechwriter, UCSB American Presidency Project, November 17, 1981
  4. ^ Warner, Frank (March 5, 2000). "The Battle of the Evil Empire". The Morning Call (Allentown, Pa.). Hosted at Free Frank Warner.
  5. ^ Glass, Andrew (March 8, 2018). "Reagan brands Soviet Union 'evil empire,' March 8, 1983". Politico. Retrieved November 27, 2024.
  6. ^ Key Records
  7. ^ Boing Boing article of 2012
  8. ^ Elizabeth Kastor (1987), The Cautious Closet of the Gay Conservative; In the Life and Death of Terry Dolan, Mirror Images From the Age of AIDS, The Washington Post, 5/11/1987
Allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_R._Dolan
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