re: “The Civil War was not about slavery. It was to build the federal army up to a size where the 14th Amendment (or something like it) could be imposed on all the States by that army. And that’s exactly what happened.”
Total BS. Completely untrue. The War of Secession was about furthering the institution of slavery into the territories that would become future states.
If you know anything about American history, you and I both know that I can quote several Southern politicians and important military leaders who said the war was completely about expanding and preserving slavery.
Lincoln campaigned on limiting slavery where it already existed - this was why the Southern states seceded. Lincoln correctly saw that secession, if allowed to stand, was a direct threat to the existence of the United States and refused to concede its legality on the part of the Southern states. He tried to resolve the issue peacefully - he begged the southern states not to resort to civil war.
It was South Carolina that fired the first official shot by the newly enacted Confederacy on a United States military installation at Fort Sumpter. The South bears the responsibility for beginning the war.
No one is claiming that Lincoln wasn’t a politician, that he didn’t have ambition, or that he was a saint - but, on this issue of the war - it was completely about sustaining and expanding slavery. Individual soldiers, north and south, fought for various reasons. I respect the bravery and fortitude of the soldiers on both sides. It is a testament to the courage and sacrifice that American soldiers are willing endure.
But, again, your contention that the Civil War is not about slavery and was some conspiracy to boost federal power is complete and utter nonsense. I say this as someone who loves American history and loves the South.
But, the South’s forcing the country into civil war is what expanded federal power as it never did before. Lincoln did what he did to win the war against secession. He did not fight the war to abolish slavery in the South. He did not fight the war to give slaves freedom. He fought the war to preserve the Union of the United States. But, it is ironic that what Lincoln set out to do - preserve the Union - wound up not only doing that, but also inadvertently accomplishing the very thing that he campaigned for in his run for the presidency - keeping slavery out of the territories. Also, it accomplished something he never campaigned for nor sought as a war goal - the destruction of the institution of slavery itself.
On the other hand, also drenched in irony, is the fact that though the Southern leadership campaigned against Lincoln’s run for the presidency and led their states to secede from the United States, and initiated civil war - all with the aim to achieve the right to expand slavery into the territories - their actions not only produced the exact opposite of what they wanted to do - but destroyed the very institution they sought to preserve - slavery.
Lincoln fought the war to stop secession and preserve the Union. The South initiated secession and the war to preserve and expand slavery. Slavery was the aggravating issue. Secession and war was the South’s means to accomplishing their goal - it failed and led to the expansion of federal power which all of us are paying for today.
Should have let the South GO, not worth the trouble.