Want to see what’s in style for college students? Look no further than the HUB-Robeson student union at Penn State, which is usually filled with hundreds of students eating, studying or just passing through. Now, the current presidential election has a sort of entertainment aspect to it. So naturally, there’s bound to be some political clothing in style too, right? What about a shirt from Ronald Reagan’s reelection campaign of 1984?
“I think it was the second election that my dad was able to vote in, so he was telling me about it,” said Peter Huber. “And I was like, ‘No way I’ve seen people with this shirt, Reagan/Bush ’84.'”
Peter Huber is a freshman at Penn State. He can often be seen wearing the Reagan/Bush shirt that he bought his senior year of high school.
“I mean, obviously I wasn’t alive during 1984,” Huber said, “so I couldn’t support that election, but Ronald Reagan was a great president from what I’ve heard.”
Even though Huber describes himself as fairly conservative, he doesn’t plan on voting this election season.
“I don’t really believe in any of the candidates’ personal beliefs,” said Huber.
He wishes there was a candidate that better reflected the Reagan/Bush era.
“I think that was kind of a golden age for Republicans in general and for conservatism,” says Huber. “And I think trying to support candidates who believe in what Ronald Reagan and George Bush did would be probably better.”
Huber says the shirt is popular among conservative fraternity members like himself at Penn State.
Jon Madeira, a junior and a fraternity member as well, also owns the Reagan/Bush shirt. Madeira says a lot of people in his fraternity own some sort of clothing bearing the “Reagan/Bush” logo.
“Our president, who’s actually Israeli, has a hat that says ‘Reagan/Bush ’84’ on it,” said Madeira. “I’m not sure why.”
Madeira says the shirt even starts conversations with classmates.
“Like I was sitting in class one day and some kid just said, ‘Hey, I like your shirt,’” Madeira said. “Then I actually found out he’s the president of the College Republicans. So that makes sense that he would like that then.”
Ken Rudin is host of the radio show and podcast Political Junkie. He’s heard of people wearing the Reagan/Bush ’84 shirt as well.
“At first, I thought it was maybe sarcastic,” said Rudin.
Rudin has been covering politics since before any of these students was born. He thinks the shirt could be gaining momentum because of the current turmoil in the Republican party.
“Ronald Reagan was the guy. If you looked at his reelection campaign, when he won 49 out of 50 states, the guy just struck chord,” Rudin said. “And I suspect that the kids are missing something of what they once knew about this country and want to harken back to the way things were.”
Maybe the shirt is a political statement, or just a throwback to a different time in American politics. But maybe, according to Madeira, it’s a bit simpler.
“I think it’s just something that frat kids enjoy wearing just because it’s ‘fratty’ or something,” says Madeira.
The shirt can be purchased online on sites like Amazon and even through a company called ‘Rowdy Gentleman.’
