There were even some Southerners that stayed loyal to the Union. One of the great Union generals, George Henry Thomas was a Virginian. But by and large, it was split between North and South. A lot of people in the South decided “Lincoln is not my President!” Where have we heard that before?
Well, of course, that’s true, West Virginia being the prime example. It just shows you how this tore up the country and, obviously, the wounds are not healed yet - at least, not here on FR! Lee certainly mulled over taking charge of the Union forces before he decided he couldn’t fight his “own country.” So he had some internal conflicts originally. What a nightmare it was...
Obama had his pen and phone through which he could rule by executive order. Lincoln had his pen and telegraph.