Imperialism: President Woodrow Wilson

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Throughout their presidency William McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt, and Woodrow Wilson began looking outward of the American borders to expand their country through Imperialism. With the entire country finally explored, it was time to move on towards the unknown. All three presidents had things very similar about their motives and actions. But, they also had different ones as well. The three Presidents saw Imperialism as a chance to expand the country and have more of a global presence. According to The Miller Center, William McKinley sought to become more involved in foreign affairs, such as freeing Cuba from under Spanish control ( McKinley, Foreign Affairs). Theodore, like McKinley, sought to intervene and end the country's policy…show more content…
Those views came to conflict on the matters of dealing with other countries. President Roosevelt sought to, " speak softly and carry a big stick, " when persuading other countries in their quest of imperialism, according to The Miller Center ( Roosevelt, Foreign Affairs). Roosevelt's goal for the country was to assemble a powerful defense and make the nation a world power. Both McKinley and Wilson believed differently. President McKinley decided on a policy of Dollar Diplomacy instead of the threat of a military. McKinley instead would have American business invest in the country to aid the economy, thus creating the country dependent on them. The idea appealed to the humanitarians, and he called it trading bullets for dollars. President Woodrow Wilson believed instead that the United States should have morals with Imperialism. He would only send aid to other countries if they had a democratic government, and also used this policy to persuade Latin America to conform to democracy according to The Miller Center ( Wilson, Foreign Affairs ). Instead of resorting to force or money, Wilson instead use his aid to aid democratic countries and encourage others to turn to
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