By Daniel Fried April 26 at 6:05 PM Daniel Fried, who served as a U.S. diplomat for 40 years, is a Distinguished Fellow at the Atlantic Council.
In one sentence, Grant manages to distinguish between Lee’s qualities as a general and the terrible cause — the destruction of the United States for the benefit of slavery — to which Lee put his talents. But the Union’s war aims grew with the body count, as though Lincoln knew that such a terrible war had to bring a result commensurate with the suffering and sacrifice necessary to win it. Lincoln redefined the Union’s war aims. The Union would fight to make our country a free nation for all who lived there. Lincoln recalled for Americans our founding principles, and not the compromises we made alongside them.
But in the course of winning the Civil War, Grant came to understand the American creed as Lincoln famously put it: America is no ethno-state, and no White Man’s Republic. It is, rather, “a new nation, dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Get ready for another Civil War because the stupidity and bigotry is running deep across America. And when the body count goes up you can all thank Trump!
Ask Trump to walk his young and vibrant self up the hill past the first fifty feet of Fredericksburg National Cemetary and tell me how great Lee was. American bodies buried 6 over.
Robert E Lee was admired by northern generals!
Robert E. Lee was a great General who just fought for the wrong side
So you are going to give him a history lesson?
Stick to writing newspapers. R.E. Lee was a great leader in which his battle plans are still studied to this day.
He probably thinks Robert E. Lee is one of the Dukes of Hazzard.
Dumb comments about who was the better general! Lincoln fired generals as they stupidly tried to capture southern cities, riling up guerrilla forces, fighting 4their homes against northern armies far from home. Grant realized North had more men so waged bloody war of attrition
Fact: everything
Comittedthe. Most. Treasonthan any american ever
I don't think Trump wrong about Anything
Trump is an ignorant man unaware of history and facts. What an embarrassment, he doesn’t even know 4 th grade social studies!
gen lee was a traitor and very bad person ...for he was a slave owner , who treated his slaves harshly and sold and separated slave family he owned ...and if it were not for lincoln lee would have been put on trial for treason and hanged if found guilty...
Trump is smart enough to know to pander to the Robert E Lee worshipers because that's where he gets his votes.
thing is all were Americans fighting Americans. Kin against Kin. Great and not so Great. All were American soldiers. Honor that.
President Trump was actually right about there having been good people on both sides.
You don’t wipe away history simply because there were many rough patches. You learn from them. Rewriting history to fit a narrative is a lie! We see enough of that from Democrats, editorials, public schools & look how far we have fallen over the last decade.
Aside from the fact that Lee was a traitor and slave owner. How can you be a great general if you a. Lost one of the most critical battles in the war you are known for arms b. Went on to lose that war?
WaPo not only gossip but now they can speak for the dead. Proud Deplorable
It's part of history Good, bad, even terrible No part of our history should be taken down, because some are offended. If your offended, don't go there, or voice your concern about that history. Praying it never happens again. Anything can be offensive Socialism is offensive
Y’all gonna keep that lie going I guess
Doubting Lee’s competence?
Both generals are long dead....who cares?
Are you saying Trump said something wrong about our American hististory? The man who says knows more than everyone even his intelligence advisors!! Shocker
When the says he's a great man
What does trump not get wrong?!
Why are people hell bent on trying to erase history ?
Wapo is fake news and Biden lied about Trumps comments
What the compost doesn’t get. That We all know it’s just a partisan rag.
Apparently it's time to take Bobby Lee out of the progressive dungeon, beat him with broomsticks, and throw him back. It seems like we just did this 6 month's ago.
Fake news.
Next thing you know DerangedDonald will be saying that African-Americans were better off under slavery because they got free room and board, and Kate Smith singing “That’s Why Darkies Were Born” will be played at Trump rallies.
Before you put Grant on a pedestal, he didn’t free his Slave until after it was Law.
You can't teach a man how to be unracist if it is in his bloodline. He honors his white supremacist DADDY on a daily basis and McConnell against POTUS 44 was no better. Call the demons out and let's get out Allies back.
He was a traitor to his country & not anywhere near the class of Grant as a general, but if Col. Chamberlain & the 20th Maine don’t hold Little Round Top with a final desperate bayonet charge on the 2nd day at Gettysburg, Lee marches on DC & wins the war. He was a good general.
He was and remains forever on the wrong side of History.
Everything
We have never as a Nation, ever rubbed the noses of those who lost a war to us in the ground. Nor have we ever kicked a dog when it is down. But now both parties are doing it. United we win, divided we fall, our enemy knows it, and when only the enemy knows it we are in Trouble.
Maybe not a lot Robert e lee was offered command of the union army was hardest thing he did turning it down lee was commanding officer of west point when grant was a cadet ithinkhe trained served every union general in Mexican American war statesrights man
History has shown Robert E Lee was the superior General. He almost beat Grant with half the resources and half the manpower. Someone’s character, sexual orientation, skin color, etc.. is totally irrelevant when determining actual talent or ability.
He was fighting for a bad cause, but few would deny he was a talented general
A well thought out and concise point of fact regarding those who led the fight to tear our nation apart in order to preserve the status quo.
Do you tapes of these conversations you had with Grant? Grant was a lot more like Trump than FakeNews would care to know.
He’s trolling the Post
A Mamba is a Mamba wether it’s green or black.
The man does not history. His family probably paid for him to schools he never would have been accepted into
General Grant would tell Trump are you kidding Mister Robert E. Lee great I wouldn't be counting on that one.
...Trump, and many others, disagree with your opinion.
He fought to protect Slavery & lost Or Misunderstanding the inevitable can lead to your demise
Almost everything?
Some people don’t realize how chilling this picture is to others😖😢
Robert E Lee number 1!!!
I’m the most terrific liar 🤥 you ever saw in your whole life. It’s awful. HoldenMoment
No one reads compost.
Trump doesn't care whether he's right or wrong. He only cares about appealing to the demographic that reveres confederate generals. They represent a significant portion of his base. Confederate generals were traitors to the flag he claims to love, but he needs the votes.
I wish a Jedi walked up slowly and dramatically opened their lightsaber...all those storm troopers
Opinion
Brilliant Article i.e. : 'Grant came to understand the American creed as Lincoln famously put it: America is no ethno-state, and no White Man’s Republic. It is, rather, “a new nation, dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.”
Why is it that everybody thinks that just because you like the rebel flag automatically by default means that you're some kind of white supremacist or you're racist of some kind people really need to learn to dig into their history before they jump to such knee-jerk reactions.
Wapo is just fake News!
Brilliant Article, concise yet prescient.
Would it really matter if he knew the difference? After next week he won't think about Robert E Lee ever again in his life. If you want to 'catch' Trump. You need to be ahead of him, not behind him. Sometimes you need to refuse certain fights to win a war.
I don't think trump ever read into any if this nor is capable of the sheer magnitude of value this article weighs in composing a meaning. To him, it would only be bellowed out by some two word phraseology or trumpology.
What the Washington Compost gets wrong about journalism. Everything
At this point do we really need to breakdown what Trump gets wrong? Pointing out anything he might actually get right is a lot easier to cram in a twitter box!
A man whose only talent is making money by hook or crook would not understand this.
Bullshit opinion
You would have to read sometimes to know if what your talking about is right or wrong but his supporters don't care because they apparently don't read either.
If people knew even 1/10 as much as they think they know about the causes and characters of the Civil War then maybe we could have some sort of meaningful conversation....but people on both sides have such an oversimplified understanding that it makes that impossible
You want to talk about how our country got most of our rocket tech from Nazi scientist? It’s Fkn history, stop trying to erase it!
Trump gets everything wrong
Do you really think they'll stop at Robert E. Lee statues? Jefferson is next, followed by Washington. Civilization will be torn down if these folks aren't stopped now.
He didn’t get nothing wrong.
Why are so many people so judgmental of significant historical figures and events?
What does trump ever get right?🙄
Robert E. Lee is a imortal shouldn't erase him take down the statues wont change nothin
What WP gets wrong about czars, they had Jeiwsh slaves!
WaPo racists
Who cares
Grant would tell the MSM they’ve lost their damn minds....
Oh please. What does Trump get right
Everything
Opinions is what rewrites history. WAPO, you're a Saturday cartoon on a Friday night.
You know who else was a great general? Erwin Rommel! He literally wrote the book on infantry tactics in the modern age of mechanized warfare. Trump's base would love a statue of Rommel on the North Lawn, maybe saluting the statue of Gen Lafayette across Pennsylvania Avenue.
What you always get wrong is his comments on Charlottesville he was talking about the free speech folks and their black leader who was on fox many many times. You love keeping a lie going that he was talking about the white idiots he wasn’t. Tell the truth now
In fact, Lee was mediocre at best. He was OK with tactics but (1) gave “overly polite” confusing orders and (2) refused to adjust his plans to ongoing contingencies. And then there is Pickett’s charge.
He doesn't care what he got wrong ....the guy fought AGAINST America! Good enough for Trump!
Quit it already. Lee was wanted by both sides
This is total bs!$/&
Did you know Robert e Lee was the superintendent at West Point?
Robert was a whistleblower and I don’t think trump knows this, although trump is also a whistleblower, in a sense. These are not the quotes of an evil man. I believe much of Roberts truth has been changed to fit someone else’s plan.
Why are you responding as if this is about RE Lee? Morons! You fall for his BS all the time. The real story the constant lies. We know what he said and we know what he meant. This story is not about RE Lee so stop falling into his stupid game.
YOU PEOPLE ARE STUPID. LEE IS BURIED AT ARLINGTON. A PLACE WHERE A DIVIDED COUNTRY IS MADE WHOLE.
Great doesn't mean morally good. You guys can't be this stupid.
Why do “southerners” keep buying the shyster snake oil from the worst of the pitchmen the northeast has to offer? George W Bush put on a cowboy hat and a fake drawl they believed he was a Texan. Trump babbles about bibles and guns and they think he’s... 🤔
He know that good ol Robbie was a whistleblower now don’t he?!? Fuck yes Robert E Lee 🙏🏻
Distraction. Ignore this
I’m guessing.....just about everything?
Robert E. Lee was the only cadet in history to never receive a demerit. He helped expand America to the Pacific ocean. He became the superintendent of West Point, and was one of America's greatest generals.
Sure Lee was great, a great loser.
100 percent biased fakenews is the Washington post
you idiot wp.....the President was talking about the 'People' who went to protect the statue of Lee.....he wasnt talking about Lee....his focus was on the 'People' who were there to protect the Lee statue....you know that but are spinning & lying...Fake News..enemy of the people
'He was a GREAT JEWISH American!'🤣😂🤣😂
Should have been locked up
History is written by the victors. Winston Churchill
Trump doesn’t care. He truly believes that Lee was great, sees nothing wrong with slavery or racism, believes bullying is appropriate behavior, and will not change. If that bothers people, vote against him. (Duh)
So we are getting rid of confederate flags and monuments on government property but yet we still have the democrat party who was the ringleader of it all.
Did trump go to nathan Bedford Forrest elementary school?
It's the first time I heard him praise a democrat
You have a 'What Trump gets wrong about INSERT TOPIC' template, don't you?
Did you know Robert E Lee's middle name is Elaine
Everything.
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