No other politician came onto the scene via an ideological speech. Sure, Kennedy, Clinton, and Obama all came on to the national scene during the Democrat convention prior to their nomination, but all of those had been in politics for some time prior that speech, and the speeches were not ideological, per se.
Certainly FDR had a long time in the office, a depression, and a looming war which we later joined, to provide a very consistent 12 years to act.
Reagan never wavered in his ideology from private citizen speaking on the rubber chicken circuit, to the "A Time for Choosing" speech, to his California governor campaign and administration, to his post governor years with his radio commentary, to his 1976 Presidential run, to his years in the wilderness, to his triumphant Presidential campaign, to his administration.
Reagan never wavered, he let the country come to him, instead of pandering to the electorate.
I do not believe there was ever a more consistent politician ever. And that consistency was in vision. Reagan's vision, espoused in that October 1964 speech, was realized almost 25 years to the day, in November 1989 with the collapse of totalitarian communism, and realized though the consistency of Reagan's vision and sheer force of Reagan's will.
I only see that as comparable to Lincoln's vision of a unified United States without the institution of slavery.
I think one has to argue Reagan has to be in the top 3 Presidents because only three Presidents have faced existential threats to the United States, and defeated them. Lincoln and the southern secession, FDR and WWII, and Reagan and totalitarian Communism.
Many academics cannot accept that Reagan planned his successes, rather than falling into them. Thus, the high rating on "luck."
Reagan also trusted his own instincts. He listened to advisors, but made his own decisions. In his first debate with Mondale, he did acquiesce to his advisors, who insisted he memorize tons of minutia to counteract Mondale's intellect and grasp of the issues. It was his worst debate ever, and led to rampant speculation in the press that he was too old for the job. After that, the handlers came in and tried to double down and Reagan told them, "No. I'm doing the next debate my way." In that debate, he killed Mondale. My two favorite lines from that debate (paraphrased).
In response to the question about his age: "I will not exploit for political purposes the youth and inexperience of my opponent."
When Mondale claimed he was strong on supporting the military, Reagan said, "Yes, I saw your ad showing you on the deck of the aircraft carrier. It's a good thing you didn't get your way or you'd have been in deep water out there. You voted against that carrier four times."
A couple of Reagan's advisors found out later that while they thought they were driving policy decisions, frequently Reagan had already made his decision. Through the use of a few questions, he would guide the advisors to the conclusion he'd already reached.
One of my favorite Reagan quotes: "It's amazing how much you can accomplish if you don't care who gets credit."
Another, which has been stolen multiple times: "A recession is when your neighbor loses his job. A depression is when you lose your job. A recovery is when Jimmy Carter loses his job."
The Republican insiders disliked Reagan, and have spent most of their time since he left the public stage dismantling his accomplishments. In 1980, they tried to force Ford on him as VP and to have Reagan accept him as a "co-president." Reagan finally accepted Bush, but knew Bush did not share his ideals. Reagan remained neutral in the 1988 elections.