Will Lincoln go down in History,as America's Dictator President?

[Karen S. Campbell]

Clement Vallandigham was probably the most famous "Copperhead" (Peace Democrats) in the north. He was always criticizing Lincoln for wanting to be a King and destroying the Republic. Peace Democrats demanded immediate peace with the South by going back to the status quo (accepting slavery as it was before the war). Some Copperheads even actively assisted the Confederacy. On May 5, 1863, Vallandigham was arrested in Dayton, Ohio (my home town) by General Burnside for being a violator of General Order No. 38, for declaring sympathy for the enemy in the military district of Ohio.

The Federal Circuit Judge upheld his arrest and his military trail. He declared it an acceptable exercise of the President's war powers. Vallandigham was found guilty but Lincoln did not want to make him a martyr to the Copperhead cause. He exiled him to the Confederacy! What a smart move, I think!! Eventually, Vallandigham found his way to Canada via Bermuda and then ran for governor of Ohio but lost. His platform was to take Ohio and any other willing states out of the Union if Lincoln didn't make peace with the South.

In this situation, "Tyrant" Lincoln showed great forbearance and good sense in his dealing with a northern traitor. I think he practiced mercy as much as he could . . . odd behavior for a dictator.