Lincoln's Unconstitutional Actions

[AussieMick]

I think that people who become successful politicians must expect to sometimes say and do things which conflict with their beliefs/principles ... maybe thats cynical but there you go.

Also, we cannot judge Lincoln by applying the morals and beliefs of our time. His ideas on racial attitudes and integration would clearly have been sourced on the mores and attitudes of his own time. Similarly to have expected him to operate effectively as a politician and President without meeting with and operating with corrupt people during those times is ludicrous.

Fighting a war or a rebellion or dealing with terrorists cannot be done with kid gloves. Obviously though any decent democracy will need to be constantly asking itself and its leaders, "Are we sure that this is reasonable ... how will History judge us if we do this?"

There have been debates about the morality of some decisions by the Allies during WW2. The bombing of Dresden in 1945 for example. Bad things do happen and it is right that we should constantly look back. It will happen that, with the benefit of hindsight, sometimes we will conclude "that was wrong."

However, it seems to me that the decisions and actions of Lincoln have been analysed and debated by many many people ... and nobody (as far as I know) has been able to prove conclusively that he deliberately did anything for which he could be reasonably criticized (bearing in mind the politics and the times).