Lincoln and His Enemies II

Lead: Abraham Lincoln faced a growing number of political opponents in the winter of 1863. Among them, the Peace Democrats skirted very close to treason.

Intro. A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts.

Content: Clement Laird Vallandigham was a lame-duck Congressman from Ohio. On January 14, 1863, he rose in the well of the House of Representatives and outlined the case for immediate peace with the rebellious Southern states. He was in favor of the Union and wanted it restored, but Northern war strategy was a failure. The South not only was unconquered; it would never be conquered. Stop the war, quit insisting on the end of the slavery and the South would come home to the Union on its own.