Lincoln (2012)

David Strathairn: William Seward

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Quotes 

• Abraham Lincoln : See what is before you. See the here and now, that's the hardest thing, the only thing that accounts. Abolishing slavery by constitutional provisions settles the fate for all coming time. Not only of the millions now in bondage, but of unborn millions to come. Two votes stand in its way. These votes must be procured.

  William Seward : We need two yeses. Three abstentions. Four yeses and one more abstention and the amendment will pass.

  Abraham Lincoln : You've got a night and a day and a night; several perfectly good hours! Now get the hell out of here and get them!

  James Ashley : Yes. But how?

  Abraham Lincoln : Buzzard's guts, man! I am the President of the United States of America! Clothed in immense power! You will procure me these votes.

• William Seward : Gentleman, you have a visitor.

  W.N. Bilbo : [checking Latham's cards]  Goddamn!

  W.N. Bilbo : [President Lincoln walks in]  Well, I'll be fucked.

  Abraham Lincoln : I wouldn't bet against it, Mr... ?

  W.N. Bilbo : W.N.Bilbo.

  Abraham Lincoln : Yeah, Mr. Bilbo. Gentlemen...

  Robert Latham : Sir.

  W.N. Bilbo : Why are you here? No offense, but Mr. Seward's banished the very mention of your name, he won't even let us use fifty-cent pieces 'cause they got your face on 'em.

  Abraham Lincoln : The Secretary of State here tells me that, uh... you got eleven Democrats in the bag. That's encouraging.

  Richard Schell : Oh, you've got no cause to be encouraged. Sir. Uh...

  Robert Latham : Are we being... fired?

  Abraham Lincoln : [quoting Shakespeare's, "Henry IV, Part 2"]  'We have heard the chimes of midnight, Master Shallow.' I'm here to alert you boys that the great day of reckoning is nigh upon us.

• William Seward : Madam, if the rebels surrendered next week, would you, at the end of this month, want Congressman Burton to vote for the Thirteenth Amendment?

  Mrs. Jolly : If that was how it was, no more war an' all, I reckon Mr Jolly much prefer not to have Congress pass the Amendment.

  William Seward : And... why is that?

  Mr. Jolly : [looks at Seward in surprise]  Niggers.

  Mrs. Jolly : If he don't have to let some Alabama coon come up from Missouri and steal his chickens and his job, we'd much prefer that.

  [Seward takes Mrs Jolly's letter, walks over to Lincoln and puts it on his desk] 

  William Seward : [quietly]  The people. I begin to see why you're in such a great hurry to put it through.

• William Seward : In my opinion...

  Abraham Lincoln : To which I always listen...

  William Seward : Or pretend to.

  Abraham Lincoln : With all three of my ears.

• William Seward : If procuring votes with offers of employment is what you intend, I'll fetch a friend from Albany who can supply the skulking men gifted at this kind of shady work. Spare me the indignity of actually speaking to Democrats. Spare you the exposure and liability.

• W.N. Bilbo : Perhaps we need reinforcements. If Jeff Davis wants to cease hostilities, who do you think'll give a genuine solid shit to free slaves?

  William Seward : Get back to it... and gentlemen, good day.

  Richard Schell : We are at an impasse.

  Robert Latham : Tell Lincoln to deny the rumors, publicly.

  Richard Schell : Tell us what you expect of us.

  William Seward : I expect you to do your work. And to have sufficient sense and taste not to presume to instruct the President. Or me.

  Richard Schell : Is there a Confederate offer, or not?

• William Seward : We can't - buy the vote for the amendment. It's too important.

  Abraham Lincoln : I said nothing of buying anything. We need twenty votes was all I said. Start of my second term, plenty of positions to fill.

• W.N. Bilbo : Congressmen come cheap. Few thousand bucks will buy you all you need.

  William Seward : The President would be unhappy to hear you did that.

  W.N. Bilbo : Well, will he be unhappy if we lose?

• James Ashley : There aren't nearly enough votes.

  Abraham Lincoln : We're whalers, Mr Ashley.

  James Ashley : Whalers? As in - whales?

  Abraham Lincoln : We've been chasing this whale for a long time. And we finally placed a harpoon in the monster's back. It's in, James. It's in. We finish the deed now. We can't wait. Or with one flop of his tail, he'll smash the boat and send us all to eternity.

  William Seward : On the 31st of this month, of this year, put the amendment up for a vote.

• William Seward : A disaster. This is a disaster.

  Abraham Lincoln : Time is a great thickener of things, Willum.

  William Seward : Yes, I suppose it is. Actually, I have no idea what you mean by that.