Editing Abraham Lincoln (section)

===Lincoln–Douglas debates and Cooper Union speech===
[[File:Lincoln O-17 by Brady, 1860.png|thumb|left|''Abraham Lincoln'', a portrait by [[Mathew Brady]] taken February 27, 1860, the day of Lincoln's [[Cooper Union speech]] in New York City]]
{{Further|Lincoln–Douglas debates|Cooper Union speech}}

In 1858, Douglas was up for re-election in the U.S. Senate, and Lincoln hoped to defeat him. Many in the party felt that a former Whig should be nominated in 1858, and Lincoln's 1856 campaigning and support of Trumbull had earned him a favor.{{sfn|White|2009|pp=247–248}} For the first time, Illinois Republicans held a convention to agree upon a Senate candidate, and Lincoln won the nomination with little opposition.{{sfn|White|2009|pp=247–250}} Lincoln accepted the nomination with great enthusiasm and zeal. After his nomination he delivered his [[Lincoln's House Divided Speech|House Divided Speech]]: "A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure permanently half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved—I do not expect the house to fall—but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing, or all the other."{{sfn|White|2009|p=251}} The speech created a stark image of the danger of disunion.{{sfn|Harris|2007|p=98}} When informed of Lincoln's nomination, Douglas stated, "[Lincoln] is the strong man of the party&nbsp;... and if I beat him, my victory will be hardly won."{{sfn|White|2009|pp=257–258}}

The Senate campaign featured seven [[Lincoln–Douglas debates|debates]] between Lincoln and Douglas; they had an atmosphere akin to a prizefight and drew thousands.{{sfnm|Donald|1996|1pp=214–218|Burlingame|2008|2loc=v. 1 pp. 487&ndash;488}} Lincoln warned that the Slave Power was threatening the values of republicanism, and he accused Douglas of distorting Jefferson's premise that [[all men are created equal]]. In his [[Freeport Doctrine]], Douglas argued that, despite the ''Dred Scott'' decision, which he claimed to support, local settlers, under [[Popular sovereignty in the United States|popular sovereignty]], should be free to choose whether to allow slavery in their territory. He accused Lincoln of having joined the abolitionists.{{sfnm|Donald|1996|pp=201&ndash;203, 212–224|Burlingame|2008|2loc=v. 1 pp. 501&ndash;504, 527&ndash;531}}

Though the Republican legislative candidates won more popular votes, the Democrats won more seats, and the legislature re-elected Douglas. However, Lincoln's articulation of the issues had given him a national political presence.{{sfn|Carwardine|2003|pp=89–90}} In the aftermath of the 1858 election, newspapers frequently mentioned Lincoln as a potential Republican presidential candidate. While Lincoln was popular in the [[Midwestern United States|Midwest]], he lacked support in the Northeast and was unsure whether to seek the office.{{sfn|White|2009|pp=291–293}} In January 1860, Lincoln told a group of political allies that he would accept the presidential nomination if offered and, in the following months, [[William O. Stoddard]]'s ''Central Illinois Gazette'', the ''Chicago Press & Tribune'', and other local papers endorsed his candidacy.{{sfn|White|2009|pp=307–308}}

On February 27, 1860, powerful New York Republicans invited Lincoln to give a [[Cooper Union speech|speech at Cooper Union]], in which he argued that the [[Founding Fathers of the United States|Founding Fathers]] had little use for popular sovereignty and had repeatedly sought to restrict slavery. He insisted that morality required opposition to slavery and rejected any "groping for some middle ground between the right and the wrong".{{sfn|Jaffa|2000|p=473}} Many in the audience thought he appeared awkward and even ugly.{{sfn|Holzer|2004|pp=108–111}} But Lincoln demonstrated intellectual leadership, which brought him into contention. Journalist [[Noah Brooks]] reported, "No man ever before made such an impression on his first appeal to a New York audience".{{sfnm|Carwardine|2003|1p=97|Holzer|2004|2p=157}} Historian [[David Herbert Donald]] described the speech as "a superb political move for an unannounced presidential aspirant."{{sfn|Donald|1996|p=240}} In response to an inquiry about his ambitions, Lincoln said, "The taste ''is'' in my mouth a little".{{sfn|Donald|1996|p=241}}