Far from it. There are many stories of Lincoln being honest and respectful. Some that I can find are when he short-changed a customer and personally went the distance to give him back his money; When he became a lawyer, the time period was well-known for dishonest lawyer, and he set out to keep his honesty, even at a financial loss. One such story is when a con-man was attempting to gain possession of land owned by a mentally-ill woman. When his associate came to divide their fees from the case, Lincoln turned down his share and the money was sent back to her. As a president, Lincoln felt he didn't need to lie. He talked his mind, even to his generals during the Civil War, about how - and what - he will be expecting out of them.