Republican Duality in 1842

I have always been perplexed at how the current Republic party tries to be the moral party, but also represents big businesses, the social elite, the rich, and isolationism. I may have come across the moment in time when it all came together. In the book I am reading now, Team of Rival (A biography of Lincoln and several of his cabinet members), it describes how in 1842, Salmon Chase was trying to strengthen the newly formed Liberal Party (which was the precursor to the Republican party). First, a little background: At the time, the Whig party was the moderate party of the North (similar to today’s Democrats); however, the Democrats back then were the pro-slavery party that dominated the south. Salmon Chase, along with others, were strong abolitionist (anti-slavery), and felt that the Whigs didn’t stand up enough to stop the spread of slavery into the new territories. Chase, a very religious man, left the Whig party to join the newly formed, very anti-slavery Liberal party. He tried to convert Whig party members, but they were loyal to their party. So he tried to convert democratic leaders and the way he did this was by making a compromising with them; basically to get their support for the liberal party, he changed his stances on banking, tariffs, and most economic issues (while also saying that slavery should be allowed in current slave states, but not expanded into new areas.) So the rich, elite, white, slave owning southern politicians could support a moral political party and they can keep their slaves and enact economic policies that will keep them rich and elite. Of course, things have changed since then, but it is possible (and I haven’t read that much on the subject), that it was Salmon Chase who helped shape the Republican Party’s duality (being moral conservatives, while helping the rich get richer). It’s just a theory.