My Econ Thought professor made a similar association as your "pet nerd" one between Reagan and Milton Friedman, that Friedman provided him all of his ideas for Reaganomics. My professor was a scholar for Cato in DC and said in all cases minus a few, most US presidents aren't incredibly intellectually gifted themselves, just conduits for intellectual thought they gather elsewhere. A bit intuitive now that I think of it, the most charismatic and congenial ones get elected in a democracy, however they must source their ideas somewhere.
My Econ Thought professor made a similar association as your "pet nerd" one between Reagan and Milton Friedman, that Friedman provided him all of his ideas for Reaganomics. My professor was a scholar for Cato in DC and said in all cases minus a few, most US presidents aren't incredibly intellectually gifted themselves, just conduits for intellectual thought they gather elsewhere. A bit intuitive now that I think of it, the most charismatic and congenial ones get elected in a democracy, however they must source their ideas somewhere.