Abraham Lincoln Quotes
If any good reason exists why we should persevere longer in withholding our recognition of the independence and sovereignty of Hayti [sic] and Liberia, I am unable to discern it.... I submit for your consideration the expediency of an appropriation for maintaining a chargé d'affaire near each of these new states.
Abraham Lincoln, 1809-1865, 16th President of the United States (Republican, IL), First Annual Message to Congress, December 3, 1861
Sourced by: Eigen's Political and Historical Quotations
“Dey” and “bey” were Arabic terms for the local ruler of an area.
Because the early nation's government was still in a state of becoming, foreign powers were hesitant to do business and conclude treaties with the newly-formed United States of America:
The document was signed in his name by his ministers.
There have been times in democracies where a foreign ministry (State Department) is isolated from the elected politicians and implements a foreign policy that is at odds with the wishes of the elected officials and the majority of the nation. A good American example of this was in 1948 where America had to decide whether to support the creation of the State of Israel in the United Nations and through diplomatic recognition. The professional diplomats in the State Department had developed very close relations with Arab States, and many State Department employees were anti-Semitic. In addition, they thought the most important thing for America was not to risk the Arab oil supply. Meanwhile, the people, Congress, and President Truman were on the other side and Truman had to finally order The Secretary of State to stop his professional diplomats from pursuing their own foreign policy preferences. Even then some did not.
The “proofs” were diplomatic assurances—treaties—that England would guarantee the territorial integrity of Belgium. The British made strong diplomatic efforts to persuade Germany not to occupy Belgium. The German’s none the less send armies in under the excuse that if they did not, the French would occupy the country and have a strategic advantage over them. Diplomacy could do no more good. England had to send troops or renege on its obligations. So England was in WWI.
She was decrying a practice where the Untied States would not negotiate or meet directly with Iran and were communicating diplomatically through other nations diplomats.
Abraham Lincoln was an American politician and lawyer who served as the 16th President of the United States from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. Lincoln led the United States through its Civil War—its bloodiest war and its greatest moral, constitutional, and political crisis. In doing so, he preserved the Union, abolished slavery, strengthened the federal government, and modernized the economy.
