Impeach Lincoln

[Karen S. Campbell]

I've never read anything about any attempt to actually impeach Lincoln. The people who might have wanted to do just that were the Radical Republicans who eventually impeached President Johnson. Lincoln was too good of a diplomat and could handle difficult people well. He opposed the extremes of the Radical Republican agenda but he didn't alienate them. Many of his cabinet were radical republicans: Salmon Chase, Edwin Stanton, William Fessenden, and James Speed. He often appointed Radical Republicans to diplomatic posts overseas.

Johnson did not have the same political skill as Lincoln and, of course, he was greatly dis-respected even before he became President.