Lincoln's Secretary of War Simon Cameron Resigns Amid Procurement Corruption and Contract Fraud Enabling Profiteering

Simon Cameron submits his resignation as Secretary of War on January 11, 1862 (remaining until January 20), amid investigations into War Department procurement irregularities and cabinet disagreements over emancipation policy and patronage distribution. Lincoln appointed Cameron, a Pennsylvania newspaper editor and politician, to the cabinet in 1861 partly in recognition of his role delivering Pennsylvania for the Republicans in the 1860 election, but Cameron’s year in office becomes marked by corruption, mismanagement, and inefficiency. Cameron fails to keep adequate records of contract awards, often relying solely on notes in his pocket or his memory. He allows special agents who are not government officials to contract on behalf of the department, with millions of dollars passing through their hands. While many agents work competently without compensation, others prove corrupt—including Cameron’s lieutenant Alexander Cummings, who wastes much of the quarter million dollars he spends. The chaotic procurement system enables widespread fraud as contractors sell defective equipment, diseased animals, and substandard supplies to the Union Army, with Cameron’s lack of oversight facilitating the “shoddy” scandal that characterizes early war contracting.

Cameron’s removal represents both accountability and its limits in wartime corruption. Lincoln replaces Cameron with Edwin M. Stanton, whose stricter regulations for approving government contracts help end much of the corruption. However, Lincoln simultaneously nominates Cameron to be Minister to Russia, with the Senate confirming the appointment 28-14 on January 14, 1862, effectively rewarding Cameron with a diplomatic post despite his mismanagement. Cameron delays his departure until May and returns in November 1862, using the interim to defend himself against critics. In April 1862, the House of Representatives censures Cameron for letting “inappropriate, unsupervised contracts,” though Cameron later succeeds in getting the censure rescinded in 1875. Lincoln publicly defends Cameron and takes responsibility for the irregular procurement handling at war’s beginning—a defense for which Cameron remains grateful and which shields Cameron from prosecution despite overseeing a system where fully one-quarter of government spending is lost to fraud.

The Cameron scandal exemplifies kakistocracy through the appointment of politically connected individuals to critical positions regardless of competence or integrity. Cameron’s selection rewards political service rather than administrative ability, and his mismanagement costs the Union millions while endangering soldiers’ lives through defective equipment. The episode demonstrates how patronage systems corrupt governance during crises when competent administration is most crucial. Cameron’s escape from consequences through diplomatic appointment reveals how political loyalty trumps accountability—Lincoln prioritizes maintaining Republican coalition unity over punishing corruption, setting a precedent that high-level officials can survive corruption scandals through political connections. The war’s massive expansion of government contracting, combined with Cameron’s refusal to maintain records or exercise oversight, creates the conditions for systematic fraud that enriches contractors while undermining the war effort, illustrating how rapid governmental growth without corresponding accountability mechanisms enables corruption at scale.