India, Feb. 10 -- Various polls that seek to ascertain the greatest President in the US' history have almost always ranked Abraham Lincoln as the nation's most esteemed leader. Lincoln, the quintessential statesman, was also the first Republican President who is remembered for his Gettysburg Address, which posited the Grand Old Party's (GOP as the Republican Party is known) progressive commitment towards liberty, equal rights, republicanism and democracy. Beyond unmatched statecraft with dignity, aplomb and humility, Lincoln was known to be personally sympathetic, magnanimous and accommodative of "others."

The Republican Party of Lincoln was indeed founded on the noble impulses of anti-slavery, social progression and liberality. Today, t...