By tradition, presidents-elect reserved a cabinet position, often secretary of state, for the leading rival in their party. John Quincy Adams inaugurated the practice by appointing one of his presidential rivals, Henry Clay, to that post. It was a controversial move in 1824; enemies of Adams denounced the appointment as a corrupt bargain.
By the 1850s, the practice had become a tradition. In that decade, Presidents Millard Fillmore, Franklin Pierce and James Buchanan installed in their cabinets men who had been major rivals for their party's nomination.
Limiting his appointments to like-minded Republican rivals was no guarantee of a harmonious administration either. The worst of Lincoln's cabinet appointments was Simon Cameron, a senator from Pennsylvania. Cameron had been one of Lincoln's major rivals for the Republican nomination. He eventually threw his support to Lincoln at the convention and fully expected to be paid back with a cabinet position.
Cameron had a reputation as corrupt, and he had made a lot of enemies over the years. Nevertheless, against his better judgment Lincoln appointed him secretary of war. Soon enough, charges of irregularity in the awarding of military contracts were flying. Within a year Lincoln had to get rid of his former rival by offering him a diplomatic post in Russia.
© Jed Lewison