Existing comment:
Member of the Opposition:
In August 1846, Abraham Lincoln was elected to the U.S House of Representatives from the only Whig district in overwhelmingly Democratic Illinois. The new congressman made the war being fought with Mexico his subject of special interest. Shortly after talking his seat in December 1847, Lincoln made speeches attacking Democratic President James K. Polk. The congressman and most members of his party argued that the conflict was unjust aggression against a weak neighbor. In spite of misgivings about the war's legality and morality, Lincoln supported appropriations to supply troops in the field. |