These statements were part of the Lincoln reconstruction plan.
When Radical Republicans in Congress demanded severe and harsh punishment to the southern states for the many damages caused during the American Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln had other plans. He wanted a pacific union of the country. That is why he allowed the southern states to do Reconstruction their own way. Lincoln only demanded loyalty through the Ten-percent plan and the Oath of Allegiance. All the details of Lincoln's view on Reconstruction can be found in the Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction of 1863.
