Trying to claim some kind of moral high ground because "I belong to the party of [Lincoln, Roosevelt, etc.]" is pretty silly, if not self-defeating. Parties are never that ideologically coherent. They look really weird if you take a few steps back (which is easier to do a few generations afterward).
Yes, Republicans in the 1860s *did* end slavery and promote civil rights.
— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) May 17, 2018
They also significantly expanded the federal government, built up the income tax, funded a huge system of public colleges, embraced reparations for slavery and, um, impeached an incompetent president.