In modern times, some critics have belittled Abraham Lincoln"s antislavery resolve as shallow. Some have portrayed him as a passive president, waiting upon the bold initiatives of others. "Citizen Lincoln" regards him differently. First, it portrays Lincoln"s animus against slavery as rooted in the highest ideals of the American Revolution, which he saw as being corrupted in his own time. Second, it analyses Lincoln"s supposed "passivity" as more aptly defined as wise caution. Lincoln learned as a legislator, first in Illinois and later in the United States Congress, that bold initiatives often backfire and fail to fulfil original intentions. In the state legislature, Lincoln supported a dramatic internal-improvements project that collapsed in the midst of a national depression. Lincoln also boldly opposed the Mexican War in Congress, only to see his cause evaporate as soon as a peace treaty was drafted with Mexico. In both instances, his timing was faulty. He had rushed into taking...