Look at the hook and thesis statement. Select the best bridging statement to use to connect them.

Hook: By 1865, the North and South were fighting viciously over the issue of Black American slavery. The Southern states left the U.S. Congress at the start of the war which made it easier for Republicans to push their agenda.
Thesis Statement: Despite fierce opposition with the Northern Democrats and even some in his own party, Abraham Lincoln successfully pushed the Thirteenth Amendment through Congress.

General Robert E. Lee surrendered in April of 1865 at Appomattox Courthouse.
Seeing the eventual end of the war, President Abraham Lincoln took advantage of the absence of the Southern Democrats to promote his anti-slavery beliefs.
The fighting between the North and South started to wind down and General Ulysses S. Grant was winning.
The country came together to do something about Black American slavery.