What if you were told that the revered leader Abraham Lincoln was actually a political tyrant who stifled his opponents by suppressing their civil rights? What if you learned that the man so affectionately referred to as the &#8220;Great Emancipator&#8221; supported white supremacy and pledged not to interfere with slavery in the South? Would you suddenly start to question everything you thought you knew about Lincoln and his presidency?<br><br>You should.<br><br>Thomas J. DiLorenzo, who ignited a fierce debate about Lincoln&#8217;s legacy with his book <i>The Real Lincoln</i>, now presents a litany of stunning new revelations that explode the most enduring (and pernicious) myths about our sixteenth president. Marshaling an astonishing amount of new evidence, <i>Lincoln Unmasked</i> offers an alarming portrait of a political manipulator and opportunist who bears little resemblance to the heroic, stoic, and principled figure of mainstream history. <br><br>Did you know that Lincoln . . .<br><br>&#8226; did NOT save the union? In fact, Lincoln did more than any other individual to destroy the voluntary union the Founding Fathers recognized.<br><br>&#8226; did NOT want to free the slaves? Lincoln, who did not believe in equality of the races, wanted the Constitution to make slavery &#8220;irrevocable.&#8221; <br><br>&#8226; was NOT a champion of the Constitution? Contrary to his high-minded rhetoric, Lincoln repeatedly trampled on the Constitution&#8212;and even issued an arrest warrant for the chief justice of the United States! <br><br>&#8226; was NOT a great statesman? Lincoln was actually a warmonger who manipulated his own people into a civil war.<br><br>&#8226; did NOT utter many of his most admired quotations? DiLorenzo exposes a legion of statements that have been falsely attributed to Lincoln for generations&#8212;usually to enhance his image. <br><br>In addition to detailing Lincoln&#8217;s offenses against the principles of freedom, equality, and states&#8217; rights, Lincoln Unmasked exposes the vast network of academics, historians, politicians, and other &#8220;gatekeepers&#8221; who have sanitized his true beliefs and willfully distorted his legacy. DiLorenzo reveals how the deification of Lincoln reflects a not-so-hidden agenda to expand the size and scope of the American state far beyond what the Founding Fathers envisioned&#8212;an expansion that Lincoln himself began.<br><br>The hagiographers have shaped Lincoln&#8217;s image to the point that it has become more fiction than fact. With <i>Lincoln Unmasked</i>, DiLorenzo shows us an Abraham Lincoln without the rhetoric, lies, and political bias that have clouded a disastrous president&#8217;s enduring damage to the nation.<br><br><br><i>From the Hardcover edition.</i>