Abraham Lincoln was in politics.
Abraham Lincoln ( [ ˈeɪbrəhæm_ˈlIŋkən ] February 12 , 1809 -- April 15 , 1865 ) was an American politician and lawyer who served as the 16th President of the United States from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865 . He suspended habeas corpus , leading to the controversial ex parte Merryman decision , and he averted potential British intervention in the war by defusing the Trent Affair in late 1861 . The United States House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the United States Congress which , along with the Senate , composes the legislature of the United States .