Some rank him at the very top. Some rank him near the bottom. Adherence to the Constitution has been extremely important in my rankings. So now it is time for some hypocrisy. If I was judging strictly on the Constitution, Lincoln would be near the bottom.
Lincoln's presidency is difficult to judge compared to others because it was such an abnormal presidency. He governed over a divided nation and the entirety of his time was in a war time administration. I will not rehash in much detail all of Lincoln's acts as President. Everyone knows the history. What I will do is bullet point list the two simple reasons Lincoln was an indispensable President. I will also present the arguments against him...and why I do not hold them against him.
Why I value Lincoln:
1. Preserving the Union - All of Lincoln's controversial acts were done solely to preserve the Union. Had he not done so, we would not likely be living in the country as it currently exists. The USA and CSA would have become two separate countries. Some may argue that would have been ok. I don't accept that. What conflicts would have arisen as a result? And it should be noted that England was waiting like a vultureto assist the CSA to damage the growing world power USA. Had the war gone on longer than it did, we likely would have seen their involvement.
2. Abolishing Slavery - Lincoln, like even many southerners, considered slavery a moral evil. However, he took arms solely to preserve the Union. This was not a war to end slavery. Although for the South, it is not altogether wrong to consider secession an act to preserve the right of slavery. Lincoln even stated he would forego freeing a single slave in order to save the Union. Once preservation of the Union became impossible, there was no reason for Lincoln not to free the slaves. And he did. It is important to remember that slavery was not an American phenomenon. Every race has been the slave and slave holder in this world. But slavery was undoubtedly evil. A country created for independence and the pursuit of happiness was never going to be legitimate with slavery. There is no debate here.
The Civil War took a major toll on Lincoln. He aged quickly from the stress, from the deaths. People like to blame secession on Lincoln. This is flat out wrong. Secession began under President Buchanan. Furthermore, Lincoln repeatedly stated before becoming President that he would uphold the Constitution and the laws protecting slavery. He did take a hardline against an y new western territories adopting slavery. The South did not want a President who hated slavery. Period. The Civil War was waiting to blow up for a long time. Past presidents had merely put legislative bandaids on the problem. Even back to President Monroe war threatened to break out before a compromise was reached. It was going to happen. Even during his career inaugural address, Lincoln stated that he had no desire to interfere with the institution of slavery where it exists. The South wasn't having it.
Lincoln viewed secession as akin to anarchy. The oncoming war was waged only for the purpose of saving the country. Did southern states have the right to secede? Yes, they did. Lincoln essentially bent the rules of the Constitution to preserve constitutional rule and the idea of a representative government. Here are the criticisms of Lincoln:
1. Habeus Corpus suspended in Maryland - Maryland, a slave state, surrounded DC with another slaves state, Virginia. Had Maryland let the Union, DC would be lost and the war over before it began. This was unconstitutional. Or was it? The Constitution gives Congress the authority to suspend habeus corpus "in cases of rebellion or invasion". This was rebellion. Habeus corpus was constitutional. But Lincoln wasn't Congress! At that time, Congress was in recess. Due to the emergency and time being critical, Lincoln acted in place of Congress. His actions were unconstitutional. However, it is disingenuous for people to claim the powers of suspending habeus corpus were themselves unconstitutional. It was just that Congress didn't do it. In fact, Congress later ratified his actions...making it Constitutional!
" Lincoln was a dictator. A tyrant!" Bull shit. Lincoln never considered restricting free speech, restricting free press critical of him, canceling the 1864 election, financially profiting from his actions, or any other traits of real dictators.
2. Didn't Ask Congress to Declare War - True. Lincoln's reasoning was that asking Congress to declare war would be according the South the label as an enemy state. An enemy country. That would have legitimized the CSA. This was not an option. A declaration of war for a rebellion was not needed. Agree or disagree, there is more to the reasoning than simply ignoring the Constitution.
3. Emancipation Proclamation was unconstitutional - Don't care.
Finally, the great what if. Before he was killed, Lincoln was being criticized for being to lenient on the rebels. He was intent on doing everything possible to rebuild the South and heal the nation. Retribution and revenge were the last things on his mind. He never got the chance. And the disastrous Andrew Johnson presidency was not what Lincoln envisioned.
The Lincoln presidency must be judged in context. The previous presidents had kicked the giant can down the road. Many of them did so weakly. Lincoln was not weak. Thankfully, he was the Commander in Chief when the inevitable war finally happened.
Lincoln's presidency is difficult to judge compared to others because it was such an abnormal presidency. He governed over a divided nation and the entirety of his time was in a war time administration. I will not rehash in much detail all of Lincoln's acts as President. Everyone knows the history. What I will do is bullet point list the two simple reasons Lincoln was an indispensable President. I will also present the arguments against him...and why I do not hold them against him.
Why I value Lincoln:
1. Preserving the Union - All of Lincoln's controversial acts were done solely to preserve the Union. Had he not done so, we would not likely be living in the country as it currently exists. The USA and CSA would have become two separate countries. Some may argue that would have been ok. I don't accept that. What conflicts would have arisen as a result? And it should be noted that England was waiting like a vultureto assist the CSA to damage the growing world power USA. Had the war gone on longer than it did, we likely would have seen their involvement.
2. Abolishing Slavery - Lincoln, like even many southerners, considered slavery a moral evil. However, he took arms solely to preserve the Union. This was not a war to end slavery. Although for the South, it is not altogether wrong to consider secession an act to preserve the right of slavery. Lincoln even stated he would forego freeing a single slave in order to save the Union. Once preservation of the Union became impossible, there was no reason for Lincoln not to free the slaves. And he did. It is important to remember that slavery was not an American phenomenon. Every race has been the slave and slave holder in this world. But slavery was undoubtedly evil. A country created for independence and the pursuit of happiness was never going to be legitimate with slavery. There is no debate here.
The Civil War took a major toll on Lincoln. He aged quickly from the stress, from the deaths. People like to blame secession on Lincoln. This is flat out wrong. Secession began under President Buchanan. Furthermore, Lincoln repeatedly stated before becoming President that he would uphold the Constitution and the laws protecting slavery. He did take a hardline against an y new western territories adopting slavery. The South did not want a President who hated slavery. Period. The Civil War was waiting to blow up for a long time. Past presidents had merely put legislative bandaids on the problem. Even back to President Monroe war threatened to break out before a compromise was reached. It was going to happen. Even during his career inaugural address, Lincoln stated that he had no desire to interfere with the institution of slavery where it exists. The South wasn't having it.
Lincoln viewed secession as akin to anarchy. The oncoming war was waged only for the purpose of saving the country. Did southern states have the right to secede? Yes, they did. Lincoln essentially bent the rules of the Constitution to preserve constitutional rule and the idea of a representative government. Here are the criticisms of Lincoln:
1. Habeus Corpus suspended in Maryland - Maryland, a slave state, surrounded DC with another slaves state, Virginia. Had Maryland let the Union, DC would be lost and the war over before it began. This was unconstitutional. Or was it? The Constitution gives Congress the authority to suspend habeus corpus "in cases of rebellion or invasion". This was rebellion. Habeus corpus was constitutional. But Lincoln wasn't Congress! At that time, Congress was in recess. Due to the emergency and time being critical, Lincoln acted in place of Congress. His actions were unconstitutional. However, it is disingenuous for people to claim the powers of suspending habeus corpus were themselves unconstitutional. It was just that Congress didn't do it. In fact, Congress later ratified his actions...making it Constitutional!
" Lincoln was a dictator. A tyrant!" Bull shit. Lincoln never considered restricting free speech, restricting free press critical of him, canceling the 1864 election, financially profiting from his actions, or any other traits of real dictators.
2. Didn't Ask Congress to Declare War - True. Lincoln's reasoning was that asking Congress to declare war would be according the South the label as an enemy state. An enemy country. That would have legitimized the CSA. This was not an option. A declaration of war for a rebellion was not needed. Agree or disagree, there is more to the reasoning than simply ignoring the Constitution.
3. Emancipation Proclamation was unconstitutional - Don't care.
Finally, the great what if. Before he was killed, Lincoln was being criticized for being to lenient on the rebels. He was intent on doing everything possible to rebuild the South and heal the nation. Retribution and revenge were the last things on his mind. He never got the chance. And the disastrous Andrew Johnson presidency was not what Lincoln envisioned.
The Lincoln presidency must be judged in context. The previous presidents had kicked the giant can down the road. Many of them did so weakly. Lincoln was not weak. Thankfully, he was the Commander in Chief when the inevitable war finally happened.
