"When a Lincoln-like man arises, let us recognize and fitly honor him. There could be no poorer way of honoring the memory of Lincoln than to assume, as we sometimes do, that the race of Lincolns has perished from the earth, and that we shall never look upon his like again. One way to ensure the passing of the Lincolns is to assume that another Lincoln can nevermore arise. Would we find Lincoln today, we must not seek him in the guise of a rail-splitter, nor as a wielder of the backwoodsman's axe, but as a mighty smiter of wrong in high places and low."
Stephen Wise
Founder/rabbi of the Free Synagogue of New York City
Founder, Zionist Organization of America
Address to Lincoln Centennial Association, Springfield, Ill., Feb. 12, 1914
In less than two months, I presume Barack Obama, as the newly inaugurated president, will return to his home state of Illinois to participate in the ceremonies recognizing the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln's birth.
(Actually, although Lincoln is associated with Illinois, which is the state where he spent most of his adult life, he was born in Kentucky — so, while Illinois is, justifiably, honoring Lincoln on his 200th birthday, it should come as no surprise to anyone that Kentucky has celebratory plans of its own.(Of course, that's something Obama and Lincoln have in common. They were born and raised elsewhere, then moved to Illinois as adults.)
Comparisons between Obama and Lincoln have been made by many — and, certainly, I would agree that there are several things the two men have in common, even though Lincoln's life ended nearly a century before Obama's began.
But is this the Second Coming? I don't know, but I'd like to see what Obama does once he's in office before anyone starts designing monuments or chiseling a fifth face on Mount Rushmore.
I would also caution those who are getting carried away with the historic implications of the inauguration — which is a month from today — that similar experiences do not produce similar results. Obama will have many pressing matters to resolve after he has taken the oath of office. How he responds to these crises will determine his place in the history books — not his resemblance (whether real or imagined) to any previous president.Many historians, for example, have puzzled over the influence that a childhood of poverty had on two political adversaries, Hubert Humphrey and Richard Nixon.
In Humphrey, it has been observed, being raised in poverty bred a generosity of spirit that motivated him to fight against the root causes of poverty on behalf of his fellow man. In Nixon, a background of poverty merely encouraged a selfishness that motivated him to do whatever was necessary to avoid being poor again.
Of course, Obama may well be regarded as a great president when his administration is over. Or he may be considered a failure. Whichever it turns out to be, there's no doubt that Obama will enter the presidency with many things in common with Lincoln besides an Illinois address:
- Both, for example, were lawyers — although Obama's experience was quite different from Lincoln's. Lincoln was self-taught, while Obama was educated at Harvard Law School.
- Both served in the Illinois state legislature — although, again, their experiences were different. Obama was in the state Senate; Lincoln was in the state House.
- Both came up short in bids for seats in the U.S. Congress. Obama was beaten when he challenged Democratic Rep. Bobby Rush in Illinois' First District in 2000. Lincoln lost his bid for the U.S. Senate in 1858.
- Both opposed wars in which America invaded foreign countries. Obama, of course, opposed the Iraq War before he ran for the U.S. Senate. Lincoln opposed the Mexican-American War, which was justified by its supporters based on the claim that Mexico had attacked Americans on American soil. Lincoln, who was serving in the House, believed the attack occurred in Mexico and insisted that President Polk "show me the spot!" where American blood was spilled before he would be persuaded to support the war.
- It has been observed that, while candidates for the U.S. Senate, both men delivered famous speeches that propelled their eventual candidacies for the presidency. Obama gave the keynote address to the 2004 Democratic National Convention. Lincoln's "House Divided" speech is considered by historians to be one of his finest.
- Both won their parties' presidential nominations by overcoming the establishment's choice, in both cases a lawyer from New York who was widely expected to win the nomination.
In yet another ironic twist, both Obama and Lincoln, after winning the presidency, selected their former rivals (Hillary Clinton in Obama's case, William Seward in Lincoln's) to be secretary of state.
Why was March 4 so important? Well, in Lincoln's day, presidents were sworn in on March 4. And, as it turned out, March 4 this year was on a Tuesday, and it was a primary election day, one of several that were labeled "make or break" for Clinton.
It wasn't a huge primary day, a "Super Tuesday" or "Tsunami Tuesday" — but four states, including Texas and Ohio, held primaries that day. Presumably, March 4 was the date Clinton was going to step aside, clearing the way for Obama to glide to the nomination.
That is not the way it worked out. Clinton won three of the four state primaries and remained in the race for another three months. Consequently, the March 4 connection seems like a bit of a stretch to me.
If we want to honor Lincoln's memory, there's no shortage of existing monuments to our 16th president. Streets, schools, parks, bridges, office buildings, counties, a tunnel, even a state capital bear his name.
And, while it has no real buying power by itself anymore, the penny bears his picture. (For that matter, so does the $5 bill. The floor is open for arguments on whether that has lost its buying power as well.)
Nearly 150 years after his death, Lincoln is remembered as one of America's great presidents. He is one of only four men to have a likeness of his face carved into a mountainside.Obama's contemporaries are in no position to assess him yet. History will judge his performance as president. Perhaps future generations, in the year 2161, will feel inclined to mark the 200th anniversary of Obama's birth. Whether that observance will be more than the bicentennial of the birth of America's first black president will depend on the decisions Obama makes now — and in the near future.
In that near future, the 200th anniversary of Lincoln's birth will be a significant day — but, in truth, it has no more importance in the context of current events than the nation's bicentennial had in the summer of 1976. It is merely a day. It is appropriate that we mark the occasion, if only to take note of how far we've come and how far we still must go, but it is still merely a day.
And we should remember Rabbi Wise's words, spoken on the 105th anniversary of Lincoln's birth.
"We dwell in times of great perplexity and are beset by far-reaching problems of social, industrial and political import," Wise said. "We shall not greatly err if upon every occasion we consult the genius of Abraham Lincoln."
Lincoln, he said, "remains the standard by which to measure men. His views are not binding upon us, but his point of view will always be our inspiration. ... Ours is not to claim his name for our standards but his aim as our standard."
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