And a general who trusts too easily, just might possibly trust too readily, sir.
He was no Sherman, but his "governance" of the south led to carpetbaggers and "south shall rise again" BS that remains to this day.
If Lee had won the war or McClellan . . . we would have very different, much stronger ideas of republic today.
As far as McClellan winning the war!! That really moves the alternate history from the realm of Science Fiction to one of Fantasy.
Arguably, the reason "the South" is a contentious topic as it stands presently - is a lack of folks being touched by the better angels of our nature. Grant wisely understood that in order to rebuild the nation, one couldn't become punitive towards his erstwhile and future countrymen.
A while back I read a tweet from an anonymous Army officer: "Sherman should've mowed the deep south like a lawn, making multiple passes"
Are you sure this can't be explained much more easily as pride?