Hahaha! No, it’s obviously not the same people. Here’s the key point. In the 19th century the Republican Part stood for classical liberalism. This meant economic and personal freedom, protected by a national government dedicated to these principles #RealHistoryAtHome https://twitter.com/realericaustin/status/1253837029609218052

Lincoln was a patriot and a nationalist. He draped himself in the flag. He championed the patent laws. He defined slavery as “you work, I eat,” ie as an offense against property rights, against people keeping the fruits of their labor #RealHistoryAtHome

These are still the core principles of the Republican Party but—here is the irony—they are upheld more strongly today in the south than in the north #RealHistoryAtHome

Conversely Lincoln saw the Democrats as the party of bigotry and comic confiscation, just as they are now. So the parties didn’t fundamentally change; rather, for a whole set of complex reasons, the north and the south changed #RealHistoryAtHome