The Lincoln Speech Every American Should Read Before America 250

In this RedState article, Susie Moore urges Americans to revisit Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address as the nation approaches its 250th anniversary, highlighting its timeless call for truth, justice, and reconciliation amid deep division.

• Delivered just weeks before his assassination in 1865, Lincoln frankly acknowledged slavery as the core cause of the Civil War without sugarcoating the nation’s wounds or the immense human cost.
• He noted both sides prayed to the same God yet invoked divine aid against each other, underscoring the tragedy of brother fighting brother while affirming God’s sovereign purposes.
• Lincoln warned that the war’s scourge might continue until the full debt of 250 years of unrequited toil was paid, invoking biblical justice: “the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.”
• The address culminates in the famous charge: “With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right,” calling for binding wounds, caring for the fallen, and pursuing lasting peace.
• Moore draws parallels to today’s fractures, praising Lincoln’s moral clarity in facing evil squarely while rejecting vengeance in favor of hope and national healing.
• As America 250 approaches, the speech offers a model for confronting modern divisions without descending into hatred or denial of truth.
• Lincoln’s legacy as a leader who preserved the Union through unimaginable trial remains essential reading for understanding resilience and principled leadership.

Read the full story:
https://redstate.com/smoosieq/2026/06/28/with-malice-toward-none-n2203782