Oath and Honor: A Memoir and a Warning

by Liz Cheney

essentially recognizing the independence of the Confederate states. Lincoln wrote, in part: This morning as for some days past, it seems exceedingly probable that this Administration will not be re-elected. Then it will be my duty to so cooperate with the President-elect, as to save the Union between the election and the inauguration; as he will have secured his election on such grounds that he cannot possibly save it afterwards. When he finished writing it, Lincoln folded the note, sealed it, and took it into a Cabinet meeting. He asked each member of his Cabinet to sign the outside of the document. The memo was Lincoln’s pledge to respect the will of the people and the outcome of the election—and to do everything in his power to help his successor if he lost. The note was also a reminder of how monumentally critical Lincoln’s reelection was. Everything depended upon it.