mr. president. >> by the time lincoln takes office, the situation at fort sumter is a national crisis. in the face of a threatening confederate army, major robert anderson stands firm, even with the union garrisonthe son of a revolutionary war veteran, anderson refuses to give up, even though his father did surrender nearby fort moultrie to the british. with a battle looming, lincoln faces a dilemma -- how to support anderson's defiant stand without firing the first shot of the civil war. >> 85 years. 85 years ago, this country was born. is this the year that it dies? >> abandon fort sumter. >> we can't hold fort sumter. that's true. but we must not abandon it. one section of this country believes slavery to be right. the other believes it to be wrong. that's where the fight is here. we must act out of faith, not fear. >> lincoln comes up with a brilliant idea. "what i'm gonna do is -- i'm gonna announce that i'm sending down relief ships, just 'cause these guys are starving." hits the ball to jefferson davis, who now has to make the decision, "do i allow these relief ships to come in, symbolizing that federal authority still reigns in the state of south carolina, or do i fire on them?" >> gene