'Public Sentiment Is Everything': Lincoln’s Idealistic View of Political Persuasion

Was he right or wrong?

“Public sentiment is everything. With it, nothing can fail. Without it, nothing can succeed.” — Abraham Lincoln, explaining how Stephen Douglas would support the pro-slavery position and he would not, from the 1958 Lincoln-Douglas debate in contest for the US Senate. This explains also why legislation passes or fails in Congress, much more important tha…