[BroJoeK]

OIFVeteran: "From my readings almost all the founding fathers realized slavery was wrong and counter to the Declaration of Independence.”

jeffersondem: "That sure sounds good to my ear.
It makes me question what I read last month in Imprimis - 41 of 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence were slave owners."

I once counted them up.
In 1776 all Southern and half of the Northern Founders were slaveholders.
By 1787 no Northern Founder owned slaves while all but two Southern Founders were slaveholders.

But in 1787 even Southern slaveholders, like Washington Jefferson & Madison, acknowledged slavery as a moral evil which should be gradually abolished.

As OIFVeteran pointed out, the dividing line between our Founders' somewhat weak abolitionism and 1860s Fire Eater pro-slavery came in roughly 1832, with the Virginia state debates on abolition.
In January 1832 the Richmond Enquirer editorialized:

"It is probable from what we hear, that the Committee on the colored population will report some plan for getting rid of free people of color [recolonization] —But is this all that can bedone?
Are we forever to suffer the greatest evil, which can scourge our land, not only to remain, but to increase in its dimensions?"

As late as 1832, even the Richmond Enquirer recognized slavery as "the greatest evil which can scourge our land", and yet long before 1860 Southern abolitionism had all but disappeared.

[OIFVeteran]

Not to go off topic, but you bring up a good point. We actually have two sets of founding fathers, with some overlap. The group that fought for our independence against Britain and the group that wrote the constitution.

[jeffersondem]

“I once counted them up. In 1776 all Southern and half of the Northern Founders were slaveholders.”

That is an interesting comment.

In your counting, was Delaware considered to be a northern or southern state?

And Pennsylvania? Was it counted as a northern state in your totals?

[jeffersondem]

“As OIFVeteran pointed out, the dividing line between our Founders’ somewhat weak abolitionism and 1860s Fire Eater pro-slavery came in roughly 1832, with the Virginia state debates on abolition.”

The bright dividing line was 1832 you say. Prior to that year must be the period the Puritans refer to as the golden era of slavery, the time when stewards - North and South - could use the labor of those bound to service to produce food and fiber without too much public opprobrium.

After 1832 was the dark era of slavery when stewards in the South used the labor of those bound to service to produce food and fiber with considerable opprobrium.

At least for the time being you have dropped the angry attack on a super-majority of the Founding Fathers ("Well... Democrats, whether Antifa or slaveholders, have always been all about the Big Lie — it's how they make their livings.
They are kindred souls, brothers in arms against the truth. Only the lies change, the liars are all the same.”)