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First, he incorrectly identified the general in command of Union forces at Gettysburg as George McClellan, instead of the colorless but competent George Meade, who took over from Joseph Hooker just three days prior to the start of that battle, which began July 1, 1863. Lincoln later installed Grant as the general in command of all forces and made Meade subordinate to him.
As is well known, when it came to prosecuting the war, Lincoln did not hesitate to sack generals who did not fulfill expectations. Future historians will wonder why the current president tolerated as long as he did Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Bremer and other hapless individuals as they led us down the road to quagmire in Iraq.
While Petraeus is an improvement on his predecessors, all of whom have received awards or promotion for their “accomplishments,” it remains to be seen if he will be “this war’s Grant” and make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.
The genius of Lincoln, as detailed by many historians, including Doris Kearns Goodwin in “Team of Rivals,” was that he not only tolerated but encouraged differing views within his cabinet.
By contrast, Bush is famous for excluding Democrats and virtually anyone with opposing views from the decision-making process (not to mention his public appearances).
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