Boss Lincoln The partisan life of Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln was a gifted party organizer and shrewd political operator, according to this eye-opening biography. Historian Pinsker (Lincolnr's Sanctuary) tracks how Lincoln forged a winning Republican coalition in 1850s Illinois by steering between antislavery radicals (i.e., abolitionists) and moderates (who wanted slavery restricted), only to swerve decisively to a radical position in 1858 to undercut his proslavery Democratic rival, Stephen A. Douglas. As president, Lincoln walked a similar tightrope between pro- and anti-emancipation Republican camps, once again swerving hard to the radical position in order to win reelection in 1864. Pinsker's prosaic Lincoln is a fascinating departure from typical depictions; Lincoln the party boss "rarely indulged in the warm, folksy language of his popular legend," but was rather a man forever twisting arms, counting votes, considering (but not committing) voter interference, "barking out orders, providing advice, pressing others to stay on task." Examples of Lincoln's sharp-elbowed tactics include calling a meeting with Frederick Douglass, who had begun to support radicals' calls for Lincoln's ouster, to casually raise the possibility of revoking the Emancipation Proclamation; Lincoln also allowed pro-Southern Ohio congressman Clement Vallandigham to return from exile so the Democrat's strident antiwar rhetoric would alienate voters during the 1864 election. The result is a penetrating study of low politics in the pursuit of higher purpose. (Feb.)Correction: A previous version of this review misidentified the author's previous title.

Portrait of a hard-nosed wheeler-dealer. Historian Pinsker, author ofLincoln's Sanctuary: Abraham Lincoln and the Soldiers' Home, dismisses the view that the 16th president was an obscure local politico who became a presidential candidate only because important men deadlocked. In 1832, at age 23, he lost his first attempt for the Illinois state House but won two years later, quickly impressed his colleagues, became floor leader for the Whig caucus, and served four terms before leaving voluntarily in 1841 as a leading Illinois political figure, a position he never surrendered. By the 1840s, both Democrats and Whigs appeared to be out of touch and dithering until the roof fell in after 1850 when the Kansas-Nebraska Act repealed the Compromise of 1820 and seemed to open western territories to slavery. This destroyed the Whigs but only split the Democrats. Lincoln worked hard to establish the new Republican Party, which would have won the 1856 presidency if Millard Fillmore of the Know Nothing Party hadn't siphoned away votes. He organized a vigorous campaign for the 1860 nomination, came in second on the first convention ballot, and won on the third. Entering familiar territory, Pinsker keeps his focus on Lincoln's leadership, largely ignoring the battlefield. Although it was a minority view at the time, he did almost everything right. Making appointments for purely political reasons, he included powerful rivals but kept his own counsel, and his cabinet was never "a happy team of loyal advisors." Historians fill volumes explaining why Lincoln fended off abolitionists until the very end, but it was simply a matter of votes. Most northerners found the Confederates obnoxious and unpatriotic yet shared their racist views. By war's end, few objected to eliminating slavery, but giving Black people equal rights remained a niche view until the 20th century. A Lincoln biography that's more perceptive than many. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.