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Team of Rivals
by Doris Kearns Godwin
Per the subtitle, this excellent book explores
the “Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln.”
Three eminent statesmen with national reputations
(William H. Seward, Salmon P. Chase, and
Edward Bates) vied for the Republican presidential
nomination in 1860, yet an obscure country
lawyer (Lincoln) showed more political acumen
and outflanked them all. As President, Lincoln
molded these and other political opponents
into a highly effective cabinet under his
undisputed leadership, despite their mutual
animosities and initial disdain for him.
While Lincoln is the central
figure, this
book is as much about the key
people on his
team (Seward, Chase, Bates, William
Stanton,
Montgomery Blair, and Gideon
Welles); it
explores their backgrounds, their
cabinet
service, and their changing perceptions
of
Lincoln. Goodwin also illustrates
how great
figures are often underestimated
in their
own day, and how reputations
can change markedly
over time. While revered after
his death,
Lincoln was widely ridiculed
and vilified
during
his Presidency, highly unpopular in many
Northern circles, never mind in the South.
Nonetheless, Lincoln’s generous and forgiving
nature, combined with wisdom and dedication
to duty, led him to rise above personal slights
and petty jealousies. |
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