Readers of my Grand Old Partisan blog sometimes e-mail me to trash the 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln (R-IL). Not content to recycle the same-old same-old absurd insults (dictator, tyrant, warmonger, racist and so on), some of these ranters cite bogus Lincoln quotes floating around the internet, such as:
"I have no intention of interfering with slavery or freeing the slaves. The white race is supreme and blacks will never marry whites, serve on juries or vote. This is my firm belief."
Of course, Abraham Lincoln never said this or wrote this or even thought this. Ronald Reagan (R-CA) had these words of advice for anyone who feels compelled to malign Abraham Lincoln, the first Republican President:
Thou shalt not speak ill of a fellow Republican.
And that includes Abraham Lincoln! Reagan's 11th Commandment. Learn it. Love it. Live it.
Michael Zak is a popular speaker to Republican organizations around the country. Back to Basics for the Republican Party is his acclaimed history of the GOP, cited by Clarence Thomas in a Supreme Court decision. He is also the author of the 2005 Republican Freedom Calendar. His Grand Old Partisan website celebrates more than fifteen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. See www.grandoldpartisan.com for more information.
