The Absurd GOP

[Rev. Rye]

Of course, even most Lost Causers acknowledge that the war wasn't over by the time Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation.

Admittedly, Antietam, the turning point of the war, was fought a few days before it was issued, but the Confederacy was by no means, treated as a conquered nation by this point. There'd still be over two and a half years left, with six battles even bloodier than Antietam left to come at that point.

Antietam was the worst single day.   But issuing the Emancipation Proclamation was a brilliant piece of propaganda.  It transformed the war from being about "Muh staits raaaats" to slavery and took any possible intervention by Europe off the board.

Well, for the North, anyway. Looking at several states' declarations of secession, not only do they mention slavery, in the cases of Georgia, Texas, and Mississippi, that's literally the first reason they gave.

And when Alexander Stevens, the VP of the CSA, gave his Cornerstone Speech, he stated outright that the CSA was founded on the foundation of slavery.

Our new government is founded upon exactly the opposite idea; its foundations are laid, its corner-stone rests, upon the great truth that the negro is not equal to the white man; that slavery subordination to the superior race is his natural and normal condition. This, our new government, is the first, in the history of the world, based upon this great physical, philosophical, and moral truth.