Pretty much the South had decided to declare war on the North who believed that the Union was a sacred and almost divine bond and that it cannot be divided. So if Lincoln did not mobilize his army in the beginning of the war, they would have impeached him.
Incorrect. The South just wanted out of The Union. They did not want war at all.
Until it was a war to end slavery. Bait and switch.
Like the bond we had with England? Why was the Union of the United Kingdom a lesser bond, though it had been in place hundreds of years, than the one that had only been in place for "four score and seven"?
And the South didn't decide to declare war. We have all been misled to believe they fired first, but the fact of the matter is Lincoln drew his pistol before they did.
So if Lincoln did not mobilize his army in the beginning of the war, they would have impeached him.
When the Southern states left in December of 1860, many in the North wished them well. There was no worries about a "sacred bond". As Horace Greeley said: “Let the erring sisters go in peace."
It wasn't until they realized how much trade and how much money they would lose that they suddenly became very angry that the South was leaving.
People lie. The bedrock core of most people's lives are their own self interest, but they always portray the promotion of their own self interest as some sort of greater good, because this makes it seem noble and not self serving.
So yeah, they will wax indignantly about the "sacred bond" of Union, while they are nervously looking at their cash register.