Rising to the Call with Sound Political Leadership - Research Paper Example

Abraham Lincoln: Rising to the Call with Sound Political Leadership The concept of leadership can be defined through different criteria for different circumstances. Political leadership requires a specific skill set and balance of ideals that provide for an understanding of power, the ability to use that power, and the intelligence to use power for the benefit of the greater good. Finding leaders that are defined by that skill set is difficult and rare. However, President Abraham Lincoln was thrust into the core of the most difficult conflict in American history. During the American Civil War, President Lincoln was put into a position where strong leadership was required to navigate the intricacies of a divided nation. Through wise decisions, meaningful and sincere rhetoric, and the ability to assert his authority as needed, President Abraham Lincoln was an example of a true leader within the American political landscape. Leadership in the political arena requires a certain amount of detachment from sentimentality so that decision making can be done without the burdens of emotions that will cause too long of a hesitation in action. This doesn’t mean that emotions are not present, but that they can be controlled in order to act within a larger framework of the greater good. Vivian Holliday, professor of history from the College of Wooster, discusses the nature of leadership as it is presented through both Machiavelli and Socratic/Platonic principles. She states that: Machiavelli is the principle founder of a ‘realist’ theory of leadership that portrays politics as a pure struggle for power in which all moral considerations are set aside, and that focuses the theory and practice of leadership on success as measured solely in terms of the acquisition and maintenance of power and the protection and promotion of the interests of the nation-state or some other political collectivity” (Holliday 51). The nature of political leadership is defined by an ability to both seek power and to do what is necessary to attain it. As well, good political leadership requires both the desire to acquire power and the ability to use that power for the greater good as a representation for the people of a collective. Holliday also includes in her discussion the more idealistic Socratic/Platonic concept of political leadership suggesting that it should be tempered with the Machiavellian concepts. Through this interpretation of political leadership, the leader is integrally connected to followers and to morals, his or her platform and idealism defining a virtue with which he or she leads. Holliday states that “The rhetorical strategy of this image of the ideal philosopher-leader is again most visible when we consider critically the image of new leadership that is vested with Socratic/Platonic knowledge and virtue and that leads through dialogue and education” (63). This also suggests that beyond the connectivity to followers and morals, a good leader uses communication and academically founded intelligent consideration in leading his people through whatever conflict that arises. However, in using idealism as framed by virtues, a leader must temper these passions with the detachment of the Machiavellian theories on attaining and maintaining power. Without power, passions will have no thrust from which to activate change. A good political leader will be prepared with education, reason and the ability to communicate in order to support his achievement of power and to promote his good use of it. Political leadership requires an understanding of power, which means that a leader must know how to attain power and maintain it in order to assert his or her control over situations that arise. Control can be defined as the ability to manage the elements of situations in such a way so that the best possible outcome can be achieved, however it must be understood that in political leadership in a democratic society it does not mean an absolutism in which all outcomes are defined solely by the leader. It means that control is maintained so that efficiency in the way in which government or the collective functions is maintained. Once attained and managed, power must be a useful tool in which the leader has the ability to make and implement decisions, even when the decisions are hard and have impacts that might cause detriment to some people. It is the virtue of the individual that will make a big difference in the application of power. According to Joseph Fornieri, American political historian and Professor of Political Science from The Rochester Institute of Technology, as he paraphrases Plutarch who wrote that “virtue is more readily identifiable when it is manifested concretely through the actions of a particular individual who embodies its qualities and characteristics” (125). The actions of President Lincoln during the Civil War showed that he could attain and manage power while tempering it with his virtues and education. The time period of the American Civil War was one of, if not the most, difficult times in the history of the United States. The issue of states rights over the rights of the federal government was at stake, with a group of states seceding from the union and instigating war. President Abraham Lincoln was thrust into the center of a conflict that threatened to radically change the composition of the nation and was required to make hard decisions as a result. In engaging in radical change through decisive actions, such as provided by the Emancipation Proclamation, President Lincoln showed that he could do what was necessary to serve the greater good. Through strategic leadership and the willingness to make hard decisions, President Lincoln navigated the threats that arose during the Civil War and helped to reunify a nation. President Abraham Lincoln proved himself to be a strong leader during a time when leadership was most needed. The strongest example of good leadership within a stressed and conflicted time period on American history is the development and activation of the Emancipation Proclamation. Fornieri cautions that some modern critics have accused President Lincoln of being the least constitutional, stating that “his broad use of executive power during the war established a precedent for the Imperial Presidency” (125). However, at a crucial moment in the division between the states, President Lincoln formed a political position through an action that defined the legitimacy of a unified nation through moral and responsive decisions that would affect the separated states through a decision against slavery. He was using his power to define the nation through unifying beliefs on the use of slavery. Fornieri states that “His ability to navigate the ship of state between the moral idealism of the radical abolitionists, who demanded “Liberty first, union afterwards” and the pragmatism of the War Democrats who demanded, in effect “a Union without liberty”, prudently achieved the correlative aims of preserving the Union and ending slavery” (126). What President Lincoln accomplished was to show that sometimes, despite the structure of the Constitution, in times of great conflict a leader must take control and enact what will do the greatest amount of good. He also showed that it is through virtue that this type of action will be justified in history. Rood, Harmon, and Tucker quote writer Sidney Fisher who wrote during the time of the Civil War as he argued “the Constitutions effect was its excessive rigidity. This rigidity prevented the government from responding adequately to the secession crisis: but more importantly, for Fisher, the Constitution allowed too much popular control of the government” (167). Because President Lincoln enacted the Proclamation without long debate and through asserting powers of the Presidency that were very loosely interpreted, the unification of the nation was defined by the unifications that were begun through a structure to end slavery. Despite the controversy over whether or not he was acting within actual power limits, the action was taken for the greater good. In addition to being able to act when needed, President Lincoln was capable of doing one of the most powerful things that a political leader can do for his or her people. Through his ability to speak effectively, he was able to inspire and motivate people towards belief in the nation and towards belief in the principles for which he stood. In giving the Gettysburg Address, President Lincoln created a work of inspiration that has far exceeded the fame of any other President in history. Kent Gramm writes that “The first words work like an incantation; they raise us from our narrow place in time. The years are skimmed by a phrase familiar long ago; our ancestor’s time will be our time.. Our Father here is ’our fathers’. Who ever knows their fathers? Up from a mythic, timeless past emerge the mystic unknown figures” (135). Within all the speeches that were given in the time period, all the rhetoric of convincing that was necessary to argue different sides of the many conflicts that existed, President Lincoln was able to speak eloquently about the emotions of the time period, inspiring the people and helping to unify them through common histories and sentimentality. The nature of political leadership is defined through the way in which power is managed. Power must be gained and maintained, it must be used to assert decisive action when necessary, and must be tempered with connectivity to people and events through virtue and morals. Through the use of education and reason, a political leader must make decisions that are timely and effective in promoting action that has a benefit to his or her people. President Abraham Lincoln used his attained power to move to action when the nation was under great conflict. When action was needed, he used his virtue as a foundation for circumventing Constitutional rigidity in order to move towards unification of the nation. His ability to move the emotions of his people further prove his ability to lead during a difficult time period. Political leadership takes specific skill sets that can inspire, motivate, and activate change. During a time of great conflict and strong opposing beliefs that were tearing the nation apart, President Lincoln was an effective leader and used his leadership to affect the outcome of the division of the nation. Works Cited Fornieri, Joseph R. “Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation: A Model of Prudent Leadership“. Tempered Strength: Studies in the Nature and Scope of Prudential Leadership. Ed. Ethan M. Fishman, Lanham, Md: Lexington Books, 2002. 125-149. Print. Gramm, Kent. November: Lincoln's Elegy at Gettysburg. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2001. Print. Holliday, Vivian L. Classical and Modern Narratives of Leadership. Wauconda, Ill: Bolchazy-Carducci Publishers, 2000. Print. Rood, Harold W, Christopher C. Harmon, and David Tucker. Statecraft and Power: Essays in Honor of Harold W. Rood. Lanham: University Press of America, 1994. Print. Outline Thesis: Through wise decisions, meaningful and sincere rhetoric, and the ability to assert his authority as needed, President Abraham Lincoln was an example of a strong political leader within a historically difficult time period. I. Introduction II. Political Leadership A. Machiavellian Realism Leadership in the political arena requires a certain amount of detachment from sentimentality so that decision making can be done without the burdens of emotions that will cause too long of a hesitation in action. B. Socratic/Platonic Idealism Holliday also includes in her discussion the more idealistic Socratic/Platonic concept of political leadership suggesting that it should be tempered with the Machiavellian concepts. C. Three Aspects of Power in Leadership A good political leader will be prepared with education, reason and the ability to communicate in order to support his achievement of power and to promote his good use of it. III. President Abraham Lincoln A. The Civil War The time period of the American Civil War was one of, if not the most, difficult times in the history of the United States. B. Emancipation Proclamation The strongest example of good leadership within a stressed and conflicted time period on American history is the development and activation of the Emancipation Proclamation. C. Asserting Executive Powers What President Lincoln accomplished was to show that sometimes, despite the structure of the Constitution, in times of great conflict a leader must take control and enact what will do the greatest amount of good. D. Powerful Rhetoric In addition to being able to act when needed, President Lincoln was capable of doing one of the most powerful things that a political leader can do for his or her people. Through his ability to speak effectively, he was able to inspire and motivate people towards belief in the nation and towards belief in the principles for which he stood. IV. Conclusion Read More