For fans of both John Edwards and Abraham Lincoln -- and I just know

[saltpoint]

there are more than just myself -- I invoke WHY LINCOLN MATTERS, by Mario Cuomo.

_ _ _

Just days before the March 2004 New York Democratic presidential primary, Senator John Edwards of North Carolina became the latest -- though undoubtedly not the last -- White House aspirant to cite Lincoln.

Asked if he believed "god is on America's side" in President Bush's war on terrorism, Edwards recalled "a sonderful story about Abraham Lincoln during the middle of the Civil War, bringing in a group of leaders, and at the end of the meeting one of the leaders said, 'Mr. President, can we . . . please join in prayer that God is on our side?' And Abraham Lincoln's response was, 'I won't join you in that prayer, but I'll join you in a prayer that we're on God's side.'"
_ _ _

For anyone who likes either Lincoln and/or Cuomo, WHY LINCOLN MATTERS is a peach of book.

[pamela]

1. I just read that same anecdote in "Saving Graces"

I remembered when Kerry used that Lincoln quote but hadn't realized that John used it first. I love Cuomo. I'll have to check out his book.

Off topic, but it's good to see you around these parts again. Heard any good tunes lately?

[saltpoint]

2. Pamela, I read thru the homeless thread you cited for us. Excellent.

And us, that quotation of Lincoln was something I think John & Elizabeth have held quite close for many years. I like it to begin with that they know it, but just imagine George and Laura Bush struggling to even remember who Lincoln was, let alone know a thing about his life and times.

When Edwards withdrew from the race, we lost more than just an excellent candidate.

Nothing against Kerry at all -- it's just that Edwards pulled it out of the library for us first.

good tunes -- you bet. Rachmaninoff, Joni Mitchell, Laura Nyro, Duke Ellington.

Good to see ya!

[LiveLiberally]

3. I haven't read Cuomo's book....

but will put in on the ever-growing list of Must Reads. Thanks for the recommendation. Another Lincoln book already on my list is William Miller's 2004 biography of Lincoln, Lincoln's Virtues: An Ethical Biography It doesn't put Lincoln explicitly in a contemporary perspective, but -- according to a review I read -- it examines Lincoln's ethical core to understand what the author calls his "unintended preparation for greatness."

BTW, I love that anecdote about God on our side (or vice versus) I hadn't heard that.

[saltpoint]

4. Hi, PRT. Well, I'll swap you a thanks for the Miller rec -- I haven't gotten

to it. There've been some fine bios on Lincoln these last few years and I love getting buried in them.

Have you read Gore Vidal's LINCOLN? It's a novel, but it's a novel by a very sharp historian.

[LiveLiberally]

5. No I haven't read Vidal's Lincoln

Yet another one for the list. I admire Vidal greatly as a novelist and public intellectual. I'm an academic historian (primarily of modern Europe with some comparative work on the U.S.) and I think Vidal represents what so many academics (myself included!) wish their work could be -- brilliantly erudite and yet accessible to a wide audience.

[saltpoint]

6. Well, if your work is anything as persuasive as your posts here, you've

already met those criteria.

Agree with you on Vidal. I've seen a couple people try to debate him on current and ancient history.

It wasn't pretty. He is imaginative and fluid and just wipes the floor with all takers.

And he's funny, too. Re the anti-gay initiatives endorsed by Anita Bryant in Florida some years ago, Vidal was asked what he thought of reports of "death threats" against Ms. Bryant.

He said, "Death threats? I doubt it. The only people who might want Anita Bryant killed are music lovers."

[LiveLiberally]

7. Thanks for the kind words but I'm afraid that....

what I've done so far has reached a few hundred specialists in my field -- IF I've been that lucky. What impresses me most about an intellect like Vidal's is its range. There doesn't seem to be a topic he's incapable of tackling. And he is a stalwart progressive to boot. I remember reading somewhere that he even ran for democratic office in the 60s.

[saltpoint]

8. Yes. He did run and did pretty well, too. Shy of winning but leaving a

deep mark.

Some of his interviews post 9-11 have been stunning.

Asked his opinion of George W. Bush, Vidal said, 'He's charmingly simian."