Cuomo On Lincoln
You have to smile when you read Cuomo's book because he takes his point of view and wraps it around what all sorts of different policians and leaders had to say about Lincoln. Of course, every smart politician has tried to say that Lincoln is on his side, an assumption that Cuomo shows is absurd. Leaving aside Cuomo's assumption that Lincoln is on his side, there is one intersting paragraph about Lincoln (Cuomo, 8):
Even as a boy he grasped the single most important idea that would sustain him-and provoke him-for the rest of his days. The proposition that all men are created equal became the thread of purpose that tied the boy to the man and then to the legend. The achievable dream of equality and opportunity for all was the "original idea" for which the struggle was made: the idea that all men are endowed by the Creator with certain unalienable rights-life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Not a bad paragraph.
Reference
Cuomo, Mario M and Harold Holzer, historical consultant. Why Lincoln Matters. Today More Than Ever. Harcourt, Inc. 2004.