Yes to the hopes of government
Of the people by the people for the people,
No to debauchery of the public mind,
No to personal malice nursed and fed,
Yes to the Constitution when a help,
No to the Constitution when a hindrance
Yes to man as a struggler amid illusions,
Each man fated to answer for himself:
Which of the faiths and illusions of mankind
Must I choose for my own sustaining light
To bring me beyond the present wilderness?
Lincoln? Was he a poet?
And did he write verses?
“I have not willingly planted a thorn
in any man's bosom.”
I shall do nothing through malice: what
Sandburg questions the reader about Abraham Lincoln in a form of an illusion. Being a poet, Sandburg ironically uses the example of poet and a poet’s verse to reference distinguished beings and their famous accomplishments. 
 Although childish, this video maturely and clearly provides an answer to this question, along with parallels to Sandburg’s thought and writing. It even makes us consider if a shared birth state accounted for part of Sandburg’s fascination with Lincoln: 

The People Yes