The reason for saying "impossible" is that in addition to the full support of the ruling Republican lawmakers, this bill also needs the help of some members of the opposition Democratic Party. And Lincoln's Republican Party was also inconsistent, divided into two camps: conservatives and radicals. Conservatives hoped to hold peace talks with the rebellious South to end the bloody civil war as soon as possible; radicals demanded not only abolition of slavery, but also giving black slaves the same rights as whites. Getting the help of both factions at the same time is like a fantasy: to agree to the conditions of the conservatives is to compromise with the traitors. And most people are in favor of abolition, believing that it will help end the war. If the peace talks go through before the bill is passed, people will no longer agree to abolition, so it's hard to agree to conservatives. The demands of the radicals will not only be fiercely opposed by the Democrats, but even the moderates in the party will also rebound. How to make the two parties and factions seek common ground while reserving differences to support themselves, Lincoln faced many difficulties.
Facing the challenge, Lincoln displayed extraordinary political skill in the film. He agreed with conservative bigwigs to secretly engage with the South, taking the opportunity to pressure the radicals to soften their views, leaving Democrats and moderates untouched. When the representatives of the South went north for peace talks, he ordered General Grant, commander-in-chief of the army, to hold them off until the bill was passed. Treating Democratic congressmen, Lincoln even more "coerced and lured", using positions in the new administration to buy. He fights and pulls against different parties, and is free to take it in and out; I can't help but think of our country's first president, Yuan Shikai.
When the Revolution of 1911 broke out, Yuan Shikai not only wanted to overthrow the Qing government, but also wanted to replace the revolutionary party in power. So he also released the old-fashioned method, which is Yuan's "tree pulling theory": the Qing Dynasty is like a three-hundred-year-old tree with intertwined roots. If you use too little force, you won't be able to bring it down; if you use too much force, the old tree will break, and the world will be in danger of falling apart. How to do? "Shake it left and right". The revolutionary party with power but no power is on the left, and the constitutional party with power and power is on the right. Shaking the left and right ends repeatedly will uproot the old tree of the Qing Dynasty. Yuan Shikai, with the effort of "pulling a big tree", managed the two factions and became the first president of the Republic of China. Comparing the methods of Lincoln and Yuan Shikai, how similar is Neel!
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