You Know, There's a War On

You Know, There's a War On

At least, when I read stuff like this from Democratic National Platform complaining about how the administration has been using military law in the midst of a war, and trampling on civil liberties:

the subversion of the civil by military law...; the arbitrary military arrest, imprisonment, trial and sentence of American citizens...; the suppression of freedom of speech and of the press; the denial of the right of asylum;... is calculated to prevent a restoration of the Union and the perpetuation of a government deriving its just powers from the consent of the government.

Amazingly enough, this isn't the current Democratic Party platform. It's that of August, 1864, quoted at Edward McPherson, Clerk of the House of Representatives (U.S.), Political History of the United States of America During the Period of Reconstruction… (Washington: Solomons & Chapman, 1875), 118. The complaint was, of course, all about civil liberties--but that the people Lincoln was fighting were also, overwhelmingly, Democrats--and northern Democrats had been very reluctant to oppose slavery--why, I'm sure that was just a coincidence.