Bonus 173: The Election of 1864

At the lowest moment of his presidency (if not the Civil War), Abraham Lincoln was committed to protecting the people's right to vote him out in favor of a negotiated end to the war—and the Union.

Welcome back to the weekly bonus content for “One First.” Although Monday’s regular newsletter will remain free for as long as I’m able to do this, I put much of the weekly bonus issue behind a paywall as an added incentive for those who are willing and able to support the work that goes into putting this newsletter together every week. I’m grateful to those of you who are already paid subscribers, and I hope that those of you who aren’t will consider a paid subscription if and when your circumstances permit.

I wanted to use this week’s bonus issue for something a little different. The Supreme Court is, alas, continuing to make news (more on that next Monday). But so is President Trump. On Monday, the President threatened to take steps to change the rules for voting in next year’s midterm elections—especially with respect to trying to prohibit the use of mail-in ballots. Even though the President has no unilateral authority to do anything about state election laws (Congress could, but that would require a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate), the rhetoric has raised understandable concerns that the President intends to try to interfere with the franchise. If anything, those concerns are heightened by the continued (and, in my view, entirely pretextual) escalation of the military presence in Washington, D.C., and the possibility that the President might use the military to make it harder for those who live in the “wrong” cities to vote.

There’s plenty to say about how unlawful all of that would be—and how fundamentally contrary to our national ethos even the implication is. But I thought I’d use the moment to reflect on a piece of history that too many people don’t know—the significance of the Election of 1864. Indeed, any story about that election ought to begin (but most definitely not end) on August 23, 1864—161 years ago this Saturday—when President Lincoln wrote an extraordinary memorandum that he made members of his Cabinet sign without reading:

For those who are not paid subscribers, we’ll be back (no later than) Monday with our regular coverage of the Supreme Court. For those who are, please read on.