If Abraham Lincoln Were a Candidate Today

Sure, why not. 2016 proves anything can happen when it comes to the US Presidency.

Alvah said:

Suppose Abraham Lincoln were a candidate for President of the U.S. today. In addition, suppose he had raised enough money so that his candidacy is taken seriously, and suppose he had discarded his absurdly racist notions, and kept his eloquence, his sharp intellect, and empathy for ordinary folk. Imagine that in all other respects, he is the same man we know from history books.

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I don't think he'd be Abraham Lincoln then. He'd look like Lincoln, and speak as eloquently. But he wouldn't be the same man at heart.

I can't think of any party who'd take him.

I don't think he was absurdly racist.

And you couldn't transport him to today. The experiences that made him who he was are not possible today. The issues that shaped him as a politician and man are different from today's issues.

Are you talking about someone with the temperament and personality of Abrahm Lincoln, but born in our era? He'd be quite a different person, influenced by different times. (He was 52 when he was elected, so you'd have to imagine someone born in 1965 and influenced by things like the Cold War and the Civil Rights Movement.)

Or an Abraham Lincoln who grew up in his own era, but due to time travel or cryogenic freezing, he's now living in our era? His attitudes and even speech would probably seem old-fashioned, but it would be interesting to see how quickly he could adjust.

Interesting to note that Lincoln suffered throughout his life from what was then called "melancholy" and would probably nowadays be diagnosed as clinical depression. He was suicidal in his youth and some of his letters from later adulthood show very dark moods. I'd imagine this could be an even bigger handicap today when so much of a politician's public life is lived in the open.

He was a terrific speechwriter, and very good at being pithy. The person who created the astounding 272-word Gettysburg Address could learn how to handle a soundbite.

angeliz2k said:

I don't think he was absurdly racist.

And you couldn't transport him to today. The experiences that made him who he was are not possible today. The issues that shaped him as a politician and man are different from today's issues.

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I would have to agree with you on this. He wasn't necessarily racist. He was merely accepting of the societal status quo. No, an Abe Lincoln born today would not be the same man as the Abe from the past. There would be some similarities, but he wouldn't be the same man.