In his book, The Real Lincoln, Thomas DeLorenzo includes an appreciable amount of discussion of the subject of secession. Although I have not fact-checked his research, here are some highly relevant excerpts: "Many of the state voting margins [on ratification of the Constitution]were quite slim (89 to 79 in Virginia; 30 to 27 in New York; 34 to 32 in Rhode Island), and these three states declared in their ordinances of ratification that, being sovereign states, they reserved the right to secede from the Union.” The central thesis of The Real Lincoln is this: "LINCOLN DID NOT LAUNCH a military invasion of the South to free the slaves. No serious student of history could deny this fact. In 1861 Lincoln's position—and the position of the Republican Party—was that Southern slavery was secure: He had no intention of disturbing it; and even if he did, it would be unconstitutional to do so. This is what he said in his First Inaugural Address....The reason Lincoln gave for launching a military invasion of the South was to “save the Union.” Translating from his obfuscating rhetoric, this means that he wanted to use military force to destroy once and for all the doctrines of federalism and states’ rights that had, since the founding of the republic, frustrated ambitious politicians like himself."
In his book, The Real Lincoln, Thomas DeLorenzo includes an appreciable amount of discussion of the subject of secession. Although I have not fact-checked his research, here are some highly relevant excerpts: "Many of the state voting margins [on ratification of the Constitution]were quite slim (89 to 79 in Virginia; 30 to 27 in New York; 34 to 32 in Rhode Island), and these three states declared in their ordinances of ratification that, being sovereign states, they reserved the right to secede from the Union.” The central thesis of The Real Lincoln is this: "LINCOLN DID NOT LAUNCH a military invasion of the South to free the slaves. No serious student of history could deny this fact. In 1861 Lincoln's position—and the position of the Republican Party—was that Southern slavery was secure: He had no intention of disturbing it; and even if he did, it would be unconstitutional to do so. This is what he said in his First Inaugural Address....The reason Lincoln gave for launching a military invasion of the South was to “save the Union.” Translating from his obfuscating rhetoric, this means that he wanted to use military force to destroy once and for all the doctrines of federalism and states’ rights that had, since the founding of the republic, frustrated ambitious politicians like himself."