president who succeeded lincoln. johnson was a southern democrat whom lincoln had picked to create a national unity ticket. there are few things people agree on but this is one. andrew johnson was one of america's worst presidents. >> he was essentially an incredibly racist neoconfederate who was dead set against congress's program to set this out. >> republicans despised andrew johnson. >> he stood for the repression of african-americans whom a war had just been fought to liberate. >> president johnson vetoed almost all the measures to give civil liberties and representation to blacks. the republican controlled congress decided to wage a political war. >> it set an impeachment trap for him. >> that trap was called the tenure of office act. >> congress passed a law over johnson's veto that said he could not fire his own cabinet