LOS ANGELES (AP) — Michael Reagan, the eldest son of President Ronald Reagan and a conservative commentator, has died. He was 80.
The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute announced his death in a post on the social platform X on Tuesday, calling him “a steadfast guardian of his father’s legacy.”
“Michael Reagan lived a life shaped by conviction, purpose, and an abiding devotion to President Reagan’s ideals,” the foundation said.
His cause of death was not immediately announced.
“Michael was called home to be with the Lord on Sunday, January 4th, surrounded by his entire family,” his wife, Colleen Reagan, and two children, Cameron Reagan and Ashley Reagan Dunster, wrote in a statement. “Our hearts are deeply broken as we grieve the loss of a man who meant so much to all who knew and loved him."
Reagan was a contributor to the conservative Newsmax television network and was known for his talk radio program, “The Michael Reagan Show.”
Born to Irene Flaugher in 1945, Reagan was adopted just hours after his birth by Ronald Reagan and his then-wife, actor Jane Wyman.
The young Reagan followed in his parents' footsteps.
After attending Arizona State University and Los Angeles Valley College, Reagan took up acting, playing in television shows including “Falcon Crest," and he spent nearly two decades as a conservative radio talk show host, speaking of politics and culture.
In two autobiographical books titled “On the Outside Looking in” and “Twice Adopted," he told of, at times, a difficult childhood, which included coming to terms with his adoption and his journey of faith.
Reagan penned several others, including "Lessons My Father Taught Me" published in 2016, where he detailed lessons learned growing up the son of Ronald Reagan.
Throughout his life, Reagan raised money and worked for charities, using powerboat racing as a means of fundraising for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and Statue of Liberty Restoration Fund. Reagan sat on the advisory board for Mixed Roots Foundation, which focuses on the foster care and adoption in the U.S. and globally.
Reagan served as chair of the John Douglas French Alzheimer's Foundation board for three years, working on the same disease his father succumbed to in 2004.
As president and chair of the Reagan Legacy Foundation, he championed the legacy of his father. The conservative former president was known for trying to scale back government and devoting his presidency to winning the Cold War.
FILE - Michael Reagan introduces a video tribute to his late father, President Ronald Reagan, during the Republican National Convention at Madison Square Garden in New York, Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2004. (AP Photo/Joe Cavaretta, File)
FILE - Michael Reagan, the son of former President Ronald Reagan, introduces Republican presidential candidate, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich during a campaign stop, Jan. 30, 2012, in Pensacola, Fla. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)
NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street’s hot start to the year is cooling a bit on Wednesday.
The S&P 500 was virtually unchanged in early trading, coming off its latest all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 18 points, or less than 0.1%, to its own record set the day before, while the Nasdaq composite was 0.1% higher, as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time.
Moves were relatively quiet across the U.S. stock market, including for Warner Bros. Discovery after it again rejected a buyout bid from Paramount and told its shareholders to stick with a rival offer from Netflix.
Warner Bros. Discovery was flat, while Paramount Skydance slipped 0.4% and Netflix rose 1.1%.
In the oil market, crude prices fell after President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Venezuela would provide 30 million to 50 million barrels of oil to the United States. A barrel of benchmark U.S. crude dropped 1.1% to $56.52. Brent crude, the international standard, fell a more modest 0.4% to $60.42 per barrel.
Prices for oil have swung through the week following Trump’s weekend move against Venezuela, which is likely sitting on some of the largest deposits of oil in the world.
Any additional oil flowing from Venezuela into the global system would push down on crude prices by increasing their supplies. Oil prices had already earlier fallen back to where they were in 2021 because of expectations of plentiful supplies. But to pull much more oil from the Venezuelan ground would likely require big investments to improve aging infrastructure.
In the bond market, Treasury yields eased after a report suggested employers outside of the government added 41,000 more jobs last month than they cut. That’s a return to growth for the survey by ADP, but Wall Street often waits for the U.S. Labor Department’s more comprehensive monthly numbers to fully react. That will come on Friday.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury eased to 4.13% from 4.18% late Tuesday.
The hope on Wall Street is that the job market remains solid enough for the economy to avoid a recession but not so strong that it keeps the Federal Reserve from cutting interest rates. The Fed cut its main interest rate three times last year to shore up the slowing job market, but it’s indicated fewer cuts may be ahead because inflation stubbornly remains above its 2% target.
Lower interest rates can worsen inflation, while also giving the economy and investment prices a boost.
In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed among some sharp moves across Europe and Asia.
Indexes dropped 0.8% in London, 0.9% in Hong Kong and 1.1% in Tokyo, while rising 0.6% in Seoul.
AP Business Writers Yuri Kageyama and Matt Ott contributed.
Joseph Stevens works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Anthony Spina works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Steven Rodriguez works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
A person walks in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
People walk in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's stock prices at a securities firm Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A person stands in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A person walks in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
