Two hundred years is a long time, two or more lifetimes even in this, the first decade of the twenty-first century. Needless to say, much can happen in such a span of time. The U.S. Constitution had at that time been in effect for about 20 years.
On February 12, 1809, a son was born to a Virginia-born Kentucky frontier couple, Thomas Lincoln, and the former Nancy Hanks. Their son, Abraham, eventually became a lawyer in Illinois, and served briefly in armed service under William Henry “Tippecanoe” Harrison. Lincoln married Mary Todd, and made a name for himself in Illinois before being considered for U.S. Senate by Illinois in 1858. Coincidentally, the Democratic candidate and victor for the U.S. Senate seat was Stephen A. Douglas, who faced off against Lincoln two years later in the 1860 U.S. Presidential Election. Despite a loss in the Senate race, Lincoln rose to national prominence in the young Republican Party as a result of his debate with Douglas.
Numerous reasons for why the 1860 U.S. elections stand out among so many others in the history of a truly great country. Among them was the fact that said year was only the second presidential election in which the modern Republican Party fielded a candidate. John Fremont, a southerner by birth who had moved west, was the Republican nominee in 1856.
In the midst of an emerging national crisis, and a four-way Presidential race, Lincoln was victorious. Before he even took office the following march, the Union whose constitution he was sworn protect began to crumble. War would begin following a rebel attack on a U.S. fort. During the course of a four-year war, and after consultation with others, a candidate who had promised to curtail the evil that was slavery took the first step towards ending the practice where it remained lawful in North America by declaring emancipated all slaves possessed in then-rebel held areas. The rest, as is said, is history.
As a party seeking direction in a new century, the GOP can learn from the first man it put in the White House. Lincoln as president represented the varied factions of his growing party in his cabinet. At great personal risk, the sixteenth President of the United States put the interests of the nation before his own. When the house conceived in liberty found itself in disunion, the President prosecuted a not-always-popular war to its end. His steadfast leadership in a time of strife, when the country faced potential threats on its borders, made it possible ultimately for the 44th President to have even sought the office.
Let us all learn from Lincoln that pragmatism and sincerity in public service matter. Let us also learn that while disagreements also exist within the big tent that is the Republican Party, those values which unite us are those which must endure. Finally, let us learn that strong leadership is not always doing that which is popular, but that which is right. Make no mistake, the Republican Party today is as then, the party of liberty, and the party of Lincoln.
Last 5 posts by James Kane
- In Defense of Michael Steele - July 9th, 2010
- McDonald and Kagan - July 2nd, 2010
- The Petraeus Dilemma. - June 23rd, 2010
- On Paul and Blumenthal - May 22nd, 2010
- Lessons from Arizona - May 12th, 2010
George W. Bush is a great example of modern Republicans attempting to live up to Abe Lincoln’s legacy: starting unnecessary wars, usurping the power of the states and centralizing it in the federal government, suspending habeus corpus, spying on his own people, and increasing the size and power of the executive branch. Lincoln was also a mercantilist who advocated increased taxes and regulation, and viewed the federal government as a tool to redistribute wealth to favored classes. Sound familiar?
In order to move this party forward, we need to move as far away from Lincoln as humanly possible.
Texas Conservative pretty much summed up my exact feelings. Lincoln was a mini dictator. He ripped the Constitution to complete shreds, on an order that would make even FDR blush. Not to mention Lincoln could have cared less about slavery. His nationalistic ferver, bent on preserving the Union at all cost to maintain tariff collection from the seceded southern states, did nothing but add fuel to the fire, sparking the war that brought the death of 350,000 Americans. If the Republican party still considers themselves the party of Lincoln, then I want to be completely opposed to EVERYTHING they advocate.