Author has out now three books out available on Amazon and published by Outlaws Publishing entitled: An Old West Texas Attorney and the 8:10 to Chicago, An Old West Texas Attorney: The Apache Custody Case, and An Old West Texas Attorney: The Fort Davis Black Sox Scandal The Most Hated President Ever “Well Mr. President Elect you got almost forty percent of the vote. Six out of ten people voted against you. I take that to mean that six out of ten people hate you.You certainly don’t have a mandate to rule.”
“Don’t need one to rule Mary. Only need the necessary electoral votes and I got those. Besides I don’t think I did all that all bad under the circumstances. My worthy opponent, His Honorable Stephen A. Douglas, got only about thirty percent of the vote. Seven out of ten people voted against him. This is the first time that I’ve beaten Stephen at anything in my entire life, except for winning you of course dear. And I beat him by over half a million votes and he wasn’t even close in the electoral college. He even came in last there behind Bell and Breckinridge.” Though the President Elect said all this with a joking false bravado, it was of little comfort to him. Abraham Lincoln turned from his wife and stared out the window of their Springfield home that night and looked upward to the darkened heavens as if there was an answer up there somewhere in those storm clouds for him to all the impending doom that he would soon be facing. “Well they’ll always hate you in the South. Eleven states there didn’t even put your name on the ballot they hate you so much.” Here Mary paused, kind of smiled, then laughed, “You did get one percent of the vote in Virginia though. The only southern state where they did allow your name on the ballot.” Abraham Lincoln smiled too and came away from the window. His eyes back down to earth now. He refused to close them and shudder in fear. Refused to be afraid of what was yet to come. “It’s not just me they hate Mary. The whole country is filled with hate. Too many factions. Too many parties. Each uncompromising. Each hating the other. Nobody leaves themselves any room to work things out any more. It’s become all or nothing for everyone. The house has been divided. And you know what happens when a house is divided.” “Well then Mr. President Elect what are you going to do about all this? This house divided.” “I don’t yet. I’ll just have to wait and see what Buchanan does and go from there. Though I doubt he’ll do anything except be glad to hand over the Presidency to me.” “You can’t wait too much longer Abraham. Eleven states already gone and more likely to follow. And they all seceded because you got elected. They didn't leave because of anything Buchanan did. This is a problem of your making. The don’t hate Buchanan. They hate you.” “I know that. But I still have to wait until I’m in charge. President Buchanan is definitely right about one thing though. The states do not have the right to secede. Where we differ is over what to do about it. Buchanan doesn’t think that he has the authority or power to stop them.” “And you believe you do?” “I don’t know if the President can prevent states from seceding or not. But I’m going to find out. I’m going to act regardless of the Constitution or any other law and you know why Mary? Because when I’m President, as commander of all our forces, I will have under my control the army of the United States of America. I can command it as I see fit. No law prohibits me from doing that. And with this army I will act.” “That means war husband you know that. A lot of people in the states that did vote for you won’t be for that. They’ll turn against you too. Won’t support a war. Won’t support you any further.” “That may be true but I’m betting more will back me than won’t. If more people hate me, then so be it. Consequences be damned. Time to move ahead. Time to act, not to worry or talk.” Abraham Lincoln sat down. His shoulders slumped. The weight of his country’s problems and its future upon them. His mind was going a mile a minute as he contemplated all the issues before him and how he was going to resolve them. Resolving them one way or the other, with or without the law or any legal authority to back him up. That went against the grain of his lawyer training and reasoning. He wanted a definitive legal answer here. But there was none and he knew it. He and he alone was going to have make up all the rules and answers as he went along. His wife broke his concentration. “What about slavery Abraham? What you going to do about that? You made a lot of speeches about that. The abolitionists are counting on you.” “I don’t know just yet what I’m going to do about slavery. Again I don’t know if the Constitution gives me any authority to abolish slavery or if it takes an act of congress to do so or a Constitutional Amendment. But I do know this. I will do something about it when the time is right.” “And how will you know when the time is right?” “Trust me Mary I will know. I have a sixth political sense about these things. I’ll do the right thing, whatever it is, when the time is right, politically right that is, to save the union.” “Enough of all this political talk Abraham. It’s giving me a headache again. Besides it’s getting late. Time for bed. You can sleep on all this as they say.” “Well I can’t plow around this stump. That’s for sure. We better start packing tomorrow for Washington. It’s only a matter of time now before all this comes to a head.” “A matter of time before someone kills you, you mean. Oh I’m so afraid for you Abraham. You’ve had so many death threats. So many people hate you. So many want you dead. I’m so afraid that someone out there will kill you.” “Don’t worry about it dear. The Pinkertons will protect us. Mr. Pinkerton is in charge of security and for getting us to Washington safely. He’s worked everything out with the railroad as to the route and security precautions. We’ll be safe. We’ll get there.” “It’s not getting there that I’m worried about Abraham. It’s after we get there.” Mary Lincoln wiped a tear from her eye as her husband put his arm around her shoulder. He towered over her as he bent down and gave her a kiss on the top of her head. “You know that you may go down as the most hated President in the history of this here country of ours Mr. Abraham Lincoln.” “Well then dear I’ll just have to save the union won’t I and become the most beloved President ever.” “Goodnight Mr.President.” “Good night Mary.”
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