Lincoln joined the newly formed anti-slavery [[Republican Party]] after the [[Whig Party]] fell apart over the issue of [[abolition]]. With a profound sense of American history, unswerving commitment to [[Republicanism]], and an almost [[Shakespeare]]an command of the language, Lincoln articulated a vision of a new birth of freedom for all Americans. The destruction of the [[Confederacy]], and of the [[Slave Power|slave power]] that menaced [[conservative]] American values, affirmed Lincoln's vision in the [[Gettysburg Address]] (1863) and guaranteed that "government of the people by the people for the people, shall not perish from the earth." | Lincoln joined the newly formed anti-slavery [[Republican Party]] after the [[Whig Party]] fell apart over the issue of [[abolition]]. With a profound sense of American history, unswerving commitment to [[Republicanism]], and an almost [[Shakespeare]]an command of the language, Lincoln articulated a vision of a new birth of freedom for all Americans. The destruction of the [[Confederacy]], and of the [[Slave Power|slave power]] that menaced [[conservative]] American values, affirmed Lincoln's vision in the [[Gettysburg Address]] (1863) and guaranteed that "government of the people by the people for the people, shall not perish from the earth." |