Joe Biden has said he wants a diverse set of viewpoints in his cabinet so he is vetting Republicans for appointees. I imagine this is influenced by Lincoln’s legendary ‘Team of Rivals’ and the book of the same name by Doris Goodwin published in 2005. Certainly I’ve seen Lincoln name checked by supporters of this policy move. However there’s a key distinction being missed by most, Seward and Chase were rivals of Lincoln, who were from his own party, the Republicans of that time.
William Seward, of Seward’s Folly fame (the purchase of Alaska which was of course proved to be a brilliant coup), and Salmon Chase were his main rivals, for the nomination, of the Republican party. They were not candidates who had run for the nomination of the opposition party! John Kasich ran for the Republican nomination in 2016.
While Barack Obama did appoint Elizabeth Warren, a politician to his left, this was to a newly created cabinet position, not one with the influence and weight of history of the Secretary of State or Treasury, the positions filled by Seward and Chase respectively. His Secretary of States were Kerry and Clinton, a move that was much more seen as grooming her for a presidential run in 2016 than working with a rival. He could have appointed her right after his run but didn’t, ignoring the most apt homage of Lincoln’s team of rivals.
