It would have been possible for America to avoid an "unnecessary war" if James Buchanan had been a stauncher executive. There were other insufficient leaders prior to his presidency, but Buchanan was the weakest, and failed in avoiding a civil war. He was indecisive and a compromiser, unwilling to choose a side or express opinions. His presidential aspirations consisted of getting through the national crisis and leaving the dirty work for his successor. In Allan Nevins's "The Needless Conflict", he explains why a firmer Buchanan could have avoided the Civil War by stopping disunion before it escalated.

Though "everyone knew that a heavy majority of the Kansas settlers were antislavery", the proslavery crowd made a tough fight. The reason for the struggle mainly rested on Buchanan's shoulders. The Kansas-Nebraska Act resolved for popular sovereignty, and its author, Stephen A. Douglas, wanted to take all measures to ensure this...