Chase |
One issue that loomed large in the mind of
Northern politicians in 1864 was the presidential election that would
be held later that year. It would be the test of whether people
wanted to continue to follow the policies pursued by President
Abraham Lincoln the previous four years. But there were some in the
Republican party that did not even want Lincoln to get a chance at
reelection. 150 years ago today a document called the Pomeroy
Circular was published. It was written by Samuel Pomeroy, a
Republican senator from Kansas. In this document titled, “The Next
Presidential Election,” Pomeroy proposed a new Republican candidate
to replace Lincoln – Salmon P. Chase. Chase was the Secretary of
the Treasury. Chase was aware of the plans of men like Pomeroy and
would have welcomed the opportunity to become President, but he also
did not want to publicly come out against Lincoln unless he was sure
the people would back him. This document was sent to many
Republicans, to help build support for Chase.
Pomeroy |
Unsurprisingly, it was not long before it fell
into Lincoln's hands and was published in the newspapers. Gideon
Welles, Secretary of the Navy, predicted that “it will be more
dangerous in its recoil than its projectile,” meaning that it would
do more damage to Chase than to Lincoln, at whom it was aimed. Chase
wrote to Lincoln that he was not involved in writing the document,
and submitted his resignation, which Lincoln refused. In the long
run, Welles proved to be right. The people did not rally behind the
idea of Chase for president, and even the Republicans of his own
state, Ohio, responded by endorsing Lincoln for president in 1864.
1 comments:
Salmon not Samuel
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