Abraham Lincoln Book Review

In “The Presidency of Abraham Lincoln,” Phillip Shaw Paludan argues that even though Abraham Lincoln faced unparalleled challenges, Lincoln was America’s greatest president as he preserved the Union and freed the slaves. According to Paludan, Lincoln’s greatness exceeds that of all other American presidents as Lincoln’s presidential service was remarkable in both the obstacles he faced as well as the ways in which he overcame them. Before accepting the distinguished chair in Lincoln studies at the University of Illinois, Springfield, Paludan was a professor of history at the University of Kansas for over 30 years. Paludan has authored several books including Victims: A True Story of the Civil War and A People’s Contest: The Union and Civil

Therefore, Lincoln was faced with monumental challenges regarding the outbreak of the Civil War. However, Lincoln was a bold and courageous leader. In order to preserve the Union and win the war, Lincoln carefully chose his generals, gathered the armies, and even set the overall strategy of the war. In fact, Lincoln “helped to gather the resources that would maintain the Union economy and that would enable the Union military to remain strong and unrelenting.” (635) According to Paludan, “this more perfect Union was achieved chiefly through an extraordinary outreach of national authority.” (636) However, Lincoln was not the only one who contributed to the Union’s win. Over 2 million Union soldiers, along with the working men and women of the Union, fought to achieve Lincoln’s goals of saving the Union and freeing the slaves. In his analysis, Paludan mentions that even “managers and entrepreneurs organized the resources that helped gain the victory.” (634) After the Union’s victory, men, women and children no longer were they denied their humanity. According to Paludan, “no longer could men, women, and children be bought and sold: treated as things with out ties to each other, without the capacity to fulfill their own dreams.” (636) Not only was

Bradford, author of “Remembering Who We Are: Observations of a Southern Conservative, ineffectively argues that Lincoln overstepped and abused his authority as president as well as commander-in-chief during the Civil War. Bradford sharply critiques Lincoln as Lincoln destroyed the republican goals created by the Founding Fathers by abusing his presidential powers. According to Bradford, “Lincoln began his tenure as a dictator when between April 12 and July 4 of 1861, without interference from Congress, he summoned militia, spent millions, suspended law, authorized recruiting, decreed a blockade, defied the Supreme Court, and pledged the nation’s credit.” (640) In fact, Bradford goes as far as calling Lincoln dishonest while characterizing him to a “cynical politician.” (632) However, during the initial stages of Lincoln’s presidency, the country was in a national crisis; therefore, Lincoln was determined to fulfill the oath of office he took in order to preserve the Union. According to Paludan, “Lincoln kept his oath by leading the nation, guiding it, insisting that it keep on with the task of saving the Union and freeing the slaves.” (634) In a time of national crisis, Lincoln used every means necessary as provided by the Constitution to fulfil his duty as president. In fact, “historians consistently have rated Lincoln the nation’s best chief executive.” (633) During his presidency, Lincoln was faced with immense challenges. Without Lincoln’s