President Obama has signed legislation establishing a commission to mark the centennial of the birth of the late President Ronald Reagan. Obama signed the measure at a White House ceremony with Reagan’s widow, Nancy Reagan.

President Obama: “President Reagan helped as much as any president to restore a sense of optimism in our country, a spirit that transcended politics, that transcended even the most heated arguments of the day.”

Many human rights groups say it was the Reagan administration that was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people in Central America through its support for right-wing governments and death squads battling popular movements.