Ability Quote by Henry Louis Gates

“Lincoln had a masterful grasp of great subjects. He was able to look at events from all sides, so as to appreciate how they…

— Henry Ketcham

Lincoln was the Twain of our politics.

— Fred Kaplan

“This, then, is a story of Lincoln’s political genius revealed through his extraordinary array of personal qualities that enabled him to form friendships with…

— Doris Kearns Goodwin

Lincoln is such an iconic figure in American history. He seems to reflect so many elements of American culture that we consider essential, whether…

— Eric Foner

Mr. Lincoln was not only a great President, but a great man - too great to be small in anything. In his company I…

— Frederick Douglass

We forget that the most successful statesmen have been professionals. Lincoln was a professional politician.

— Felix Frankfurter

“After the Lincoln-Douglas debates made Lincoln a nationally recognized politician, Illinois papers began to mention Lincoln as a Republican candidate for President throughout 1859. …

— Charles River Editors

Abraham Lincoln comes from nothing, has no education, no money, lives in the middle of nowhere on the frontier. And despite the fact that…

— Seth Grahame-Smith

Abraham Lincoln was not all brooding and melancholy and patient understanding. There was a hard core in him, and plenty of toughness. He could…

— Bruce Catton

Because Lincoln is so closely identified with what it is to be American, everyone wants to claim him, to rewrite his story to satisfy…

— Henry Louis Gates

But having said all of that, that still doesn't account for a lot of the increase in popularity which stems, I think, from Lincoln's…

— David Herbert Donald

Lincoln is me. He is America. He is what makes us a great nation and a dangerous nation, all wrapped up in one man.

— Bill Oberst Jr