Abraham Lincoln---The Greatest Us Politician

Every time we open The NewYork Times and scan it, we can always find some articles attacking President Bush for Iraq War or lashing at President Obama's current policy. So, we may ask what kind of qualitities are required to make a successful politician? Maybe we can look for the answer in the 16th president of US---Abraham Lincoln. According to "The Times US presidential rankings", Lincoln was honored the greatest US president (Hines). Lincoln made it because of his gift in using the power of language and his efforts to reunite the nation as a whole.

First, mastering the art of speech is very important for a politician, because it can help to get his ideas across to the audience and so make great contributions to winning public support. As is known to all, President Obama 's skills in giving a speech paved his way to the Oval Office. And according to Ed Hornick, CNN writer and author of "For Omaba, Lincoln was Model President", Lincoln has a tremendous trust in words and the power of language (Hornick). According to Frank Beardsley, VOA writer and author of "The Story of the Lincoln-Douglas Debates of 1858", Lincoln and Douglas held several debates to campaign for a seat in the US Senate. The debates covered party politics and the future of the nation (Beardsley). Lincoln failed the compaign, his debates with Douglas, however, made him well-known throughout the country. His camaign speeches had been published everywhere in the East. People began to speak of him as a presidential candidate (Beardsley). In fact Lincoln's talents in using the power of langguage shown in the debates had a big impact on his winning the presidential election. In the debates, the audience tend to make a comparison between the the speakers. Lincoln clearly stated his opinions and meanwhile asked questions which he knew would cause trouble for Douglas (Beardsley). In doing so, Lincoln successfully established a frank and honest image. Also, when we review "the Gettysburg Address", we can still be astonisheds at Lincoln's determination to continue the civil war and his faith in the nation. "we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth. " (This). These words were powerful, they well inspired the North army to carry on and also justified the Civil War by declaring that they were fighting for national unity.

Second, his efforts to reunite the nation is also the key to make Lincoln a great politician. One of the judgements for a good politician is whether he contributes to the prosperity of the country. And the unity of a nation is the precondition for it to thrive. However, the situation Lincoln faced after he won election was not so good. According to Nancy Steinbach, VOA writer and author of "The

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