[BillyBoy]

>> Lincoln would have made slavery permanent. <<

And Jefferson Davis beat him to the punch.

[BroJoeK]

John 3_19-21: "Lincoln would have made slavery permanent."

BillyBoy: "And Jefferson Davis beat him to the punch."

In early 1861 Lincoln was prepared to accept almost any compromise which would preserve the Union.
But though several proposals were floated, none were ever accepted by the Confederacy, and no compromise was ever reached.

Instead, the Confederacy provoked, started and then formally declared war on the United States on May 6, 1861.
At that point, Lincoln had only one constitutional duty, and that was to defeat the military power which was assaulting the United States.