He managed to get letters and speeches widely published so voters would know his thoughts and words. Lincoln, like Trump, developed ingenious end runs around the press to communicate directly with the people. Lincoln did not order the suppressions, but he rarely objected. His administration believed some opposition newspapers fueled treason.ĭuring the Civil War, federal authorities sometimes harassed or closed antiwar newspapers, and even arrested editors. Lincoln’s counterattacks could be more aggressive.
Trump returns the media’s fire almost daily, but his assaults have been a war of words. You can imagine what Southern newspapers wrote. “The man who votes for Lincoln now is a traitor,” one Wisconsin paper asserted when he ran for reelection in 1864. Newspapers called him a demon, a buffoon, a miserable failure, a disgrace to the nation. Lincoln, like Trump, was furiously attacked in the media. The Springfield Republican, in Massachusetts, called it “a perfect gem, deep in feeling, compact in thought and expression.” In 1863, for example, after the Gettysburg Address, the Democratic Chicago Times proclaimed that “the cheek of every American must tingle with shame as he reads the silly, flat and dishwatery utterances” of Lincoln’s speech. In Lincoln’s day, newspapers were closely aligned with the Democratic or Republican parties, and it showed in their reporting. Trump is governing in perhaps the most acrimonious period since.īoth presidencies have been times of extreme media partisanship. Lincoln governed during the most divided era in our nation’s history. In 1860, secessionists wore ribbons with slogans such as “Resistance to Lincoln is Obedience to God.” Resistance - sound familiar? He often stored important papers in his hat, and in the corner of his Springfield, Ill., office sat a stack of documents labeled: “When you can’t find it anywhere else, look in this.”īoth men experienced harsh reactions to their elections. Before his presidency, Lincoln ran a two-man law firm with a reputation for disorganization. Trump, on the other hand, had far more executive experience. Lincoln had served only four terms in the Illinois legislature and one term in Congress. In 1860, Lincoln, like Trump, defeated a field of better-connected rivals to capture the Republican nomination and win the general election.īoth men came to office with little or no government experience. Trump is the 19th.īoth men were long-shot candidates.
Lincoln was the first Republican president. And as much as we would like to know exactly why two of our most loved presidents were assassinated, these coincidences offer no such explanation for these tragic events.For starters, they share the same political party. Conversely, Oswald was arrested and remained in custody for two days before a private citizen named Jack Ruby shot him.Īs Snopes demonstrates, most of these parallels are superficial coincidences.
A trooper shot Booth, aiming for his arm but striking his neck instead. Federal troops discovered him hiding on a farm, and set fire to the shed when he refused to surrender. Snopes characterizes this final parallel as “superficial.” And the publication also calls into question the use of the word “assassinated.” After Booth shot Lincoln, he fled the scene and eluded capture for 11 days.