Lincoln generally opposed any compromise during the Secession Crisis, as he insisted that secession was mere bluster and that nothing substantial would come of it. His election signified the right to rule, he said, and he would exercise that right. Michael Holt of the University of Virginia calls Lincoln’s performance during the Secession Crisis the “nadir” of his statesmanship. I had occasion to write about this recently:
http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/2013/10/17/kevin-gutzman-lincoln-kennedy-obama-and-the-value-of-compromise/
