Yes and no. Reagan was the governor of California, so had previous political experience. And he had been president of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) in the late 40s / early 50s, so he had a history of representing other people's interests.
I think it's clear the worst enemy of a leader is themselves... or the state system they are supporting. States (and businesses for that matter) are optimized for the present. As the world changes, the state (or party, or business, or ...) becomes less efficient. Political organizations have the drawback that they enforce public fealty to "the official party line" so you can never tell with certainty who does and who doesn't see the world through lenses crafted to view an older world.
Political "realities" from 50 years ago no longer hold. Republicans from the 70s would not recognize the current party. Largely true of the Democrats as well. Half-way true if you look 20 years ago.
