now let's hear from michael burlingame. thank you for joining us today. >> before i begin my remarks, i would like to thank the archives for letting me participate in this series. over the years i've spent many ours in the archives conducting lincoln research, and this is relevant for the book i'm talking about today within the records of the committee on -- [inaudible] there's a great deal of information about how -- was done at the white house indicating that it was not always above board, and it was was -- see official documents about what was really going on. so i'm very grateful to the archives for superbing these records and making them so easily available to scholars like myself. okay, enough said. let's talk about the book. abraham lincoln was apparently one of those men who -- as an oxymoron. a contradiction in terms. during the civil war he pardoned a union soldier who had deserted to return home and weld his sweetheart. he -- wed his sweetheart. he reportedly had been flirting with another -- [inaudible] as the p

speech and song and her new book is his greatest speeches how lincoln moved the nation welcome michael burlingame noah feldman and diana schaub. michael berlin. let us begin with you. tell our friends why you argue in your new book that lincoln was the black man's president and you have you have several speeches of frederick douglass that you begin with including in 1865 eulogy on lincoln where he said no people at class of people in the country have a better. reason for lamenting the death of lincoln then have the colored people. what is the significance of that? speech? and why do you believe that lincoln was the black man's president? well, thank you very much for your kind introduction and thank you for inviting me. i feel a little out of place because my book is focused the central theme i'm book is let's not focus on lincoln speeches and writings and policies in the light. let's focus on lincoln's interaction with black people both in springfield and in washington, but the title of the book comes from a eulogy that frederick douglass delivered on june 1st 1865 in cooper union the premiere s