In this highly passionate political season, I thought I’d recommend something pertinent and influential. Abraham Lincoln is considered one of our greatest treasures, having saved the union and freed the slaves.  Yes, his greatness is in saving the union but as for freeing the slaves, that was collateral and not his main objective and he himself said if he didn’t have to free them to save the union, he wouldn’t.  Aside from his relationship with Frederick Douglass, he wasn’t a champion of equal rights or social justice.

But his true greatness is in saving the union, I agree.  And that process began with the assembling of his cabinet: One time Republican presidential candidate William H. Seward, Secretary of State, Salmon P. Chase, Treasury Secretary, and Edward Bates Attorney General. The other major player in this detailed work is Edwin M. Stanton, War Secretary.  Their experience dwarfed Lincoln’s but his humility in adding them to his framework of saving the nation propelled them to be subservient to the new president and come together for the sake of the united states.

This book reads like fiction; descriptive in telling of the times preceding the Civil War and you’ll actually have to catch yourself every now and then and remember, ‘this really happened.’

President Obama, a great fan of Lincoln’s presidential philosophy, adhered to Lincoln’s strategy and added Hillary Clinton to his cabinet; even after a bitter primary battle that could have easily ended their relationship.  But like Lincoln, Obama was a neophyte in the political game therefore he knew his success depended on the experience of Mrs. Clinton.

I highly recommend this piece just to get a better understanding of politics 150 years ago and how they’ve significantly changed since.  Imagine the loser of today’s race being your vice president?  This was the case in 1860…

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