Via White House Dossier:
Abraham Lincoln saved the Union and freed the slaves, but President Obama Thursday night claimed an achievement for the great man almost as dear to the hearts of liberals: That he began the modern era of big government.
Here’s what Obama said:
We all remember Abraham Lincoln as the leader who saved our Union. Founder of the Republican Party. But in the middle of a civil war, he was also a leader who looked to the future — a Republican President who mobilized government to build the Transcontinental Railroad — (applause) — launch the National Academy of Sciences, set up the first land grant colleges. (Applause.) And leaders of both Parties have followed the example he set.
Well, if only it were true that leaders of both Parties — including Obama — had actually followed the example Lincoln set!
Unlike the programs of the New Deal, the Great Society, and the trillions in new debt Obama himself has racked up, the Transcontinental Railroad did not cost the government a cent, because it was financed by bonds that the railroads paid back, with interest.