The Cotton Deals

[L Verge]

Over the years, I have had only a cursory "education" in the political wranglings of Mr Lincoln and his administration during the Civil War. I have come to realize, however, that there is one policy of that era that I should have a better background in because it appears to be one of the things that might have led to his assassination.

I am referring to the wheelings and dealings surrounding what appears (on the surface) to be illegal - and hypocritical - cotton trading between the two warring factions for economic gain. In the past 3-4 years, I have read proposed books and published books that include this theme. I recently went online and read some scholarly thoughts on the issue; one essay in particular intrigued me with its title: Trader or Traitor. It ended up taking a middle-of-the-road approach in its conclusion, and I can live with that, I guess.

However, I would like some brief and lucid comments from our Lincoln scholars on this forum as to their feelings about the cotton trading that Lincoln certainly condoned and perhaps participated in, at least via issuing permits to family and friends with few exceptions.

I have developed some personal opinions about the logic behind these practices as well as views as to their legality, hypocrisy, and even cause for a "coup d'etat" as recently explored in the fictional book The Lincoln Deception. Could I get some further edumacation from others on this forum? In political language that I can understand, please...

P.S. I am not attempting to judge Lincoln in this case - just to understand him. Is it all tied to the industrial/military complex that we still blame for everything today?