Kurt+-+Lincoln+-+F08

= = Abraham Lincoln

Birth: February 12, 1809 Death: April 15, 1865 Political Party: Whig, Republican, National Union Date of Terms: 1860-1864, 1864-1865 Vice President(s):
 * Hannibal Hamlin (1860-1864)
 * Andrew Johnson (1865)

Abraham Lincoln took over the nation in a time of great despair and conflict. His goal was to maintain the Union and along with that came good things such as winning the war and freeing the slaves and for that I would have to give him an A. He dealt with the ordeal at hand with great poise and composure and guided our country through it greatly and that is why I reward him with an A.

The goal that Abraham Lincoln had when he began his presidency was to preserve the Union and bring the South back to the Union by any means necessary. Another goal that sort of fell in his lap during the war was the issue of slavery. He successfully abolished it with his Emancipation Proclamation that he issued in 1862. He also accomplished his goal of preserving the Union by winning the Civil War and bringing the South back into the United States

When Lincoln began his presidency Congress was not in session. He used this to his advantage by passing alot of legislatures that may not have been approved if Congress were in session. He was not extremely popular with the Democrats in Congress because of his decision to suspend the writ of habeus corpus in some areas of the United States. Other wartime liberties that Lincoln took during his time as president included ordering a draft for 75,000 people to fight in the Civil War and he also issued the Emancipation Proclamation becuase he felt it to have military justification. The decisions that he made despite being questionable in how they were passed proved to benefit the country in many ways.

The most positive thing that came out of Lincoln´s presidency was the saving the Union after the Civil War. Despite the incompetence of the generals he chose to lead the Army of the Potomac during the Civil War he was able to succesfully guide the nation through and hold down the uprising of the Confederate States of America. All the while he was also able to free the slaves throughout the entire country. The most negative thing that Lincoln did during his presidency was the wartime liberties he took while Congress was out of session during the beginning of the war. The decisions he made were somewhat contreversial but he did them out of what he believed was the best interest for the country.

The lasting effect that Lincoln had on the country was freeing the slaves with the Emancipation Proclamationa and later the abolishing of slavery through the thirteenth Amendment. Had he not been elected again for a second term this would have never got accomplished because McClellan would have granted the return of the rights the South had back at the beginning of the war.

If it were not for John Wilkes Booth assasinating him in 1865 who knows what our nation could be like today. The way he was able to lead our nation through arguably one of its toughest times in history is the reason I would have to grant him an A for his presidency. The nation was in a much better position after he was through with it.

Bibliography

__American Pageant : Advanced Placement__. Boston: Houghton Mifflin College Division, 2001.

"Biography of Abraham Lincoln." __White House__. 30 Oct. 2008 http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/al16.html.

"Abraham Lincoln." __Abraham Lincoln__. 30 Oct. 2008 http://sc94.ameslab.gov/tour/alincoln.html.