> Which Republican president commanded troops on June 19, 1865? <
By golly, you’ve got a point there! I just looked it up. Andrew Johnson was president at the time. He ran with Lincoln, who was of course a Republican. But to my surprise, I read that Johnson himself was a Democrat.
So I guess I’ll have to correct my future statements on the matter to say:
“Juneteenth should be marked as the day Republican troops under the command of Republican officers freed the last of the slaves held captive by Democrats.”
(I’m sure I’m safe with that one, as there had to be quite a few officers present who were Republicans.)
Oh, and thanks for the post, RE. Because of it, I learned something new today!
Abe made a fatal error by having Johnson as his vp.
If we’re getting that technical, Lincoln and Johnson ran on the National Union Party ticket.