8 - Pacific Empire – and Upheaval

Summary

William McKinley was willing to endure disorder and bear upheavals, even full-scale insurrection in the Philippines or the extraordinary dangers of becoming involved in war on the Asian mainland. The American empire was built on consensus, morality, and tradition, unlike European empires, according to McKinley. The U.S. domination of foreign peoples was only incidental to realizing America's commercial and cultural destinies. In U.S. officials' eyes, it had replaced Great Britain as the major danger to US interests in the Caribbean and the southwest Pacific. The U.S. business community tried to keep Asia in the forefront of the nation's debate. To maintain access to the Open Door opportunities, McKinley took a historic step in creating a new, twentieth-century presidential power. McKinley bravely used force to protect Americans from the Boxers and the Russian imperialists, although voters never realized how torn he actually was over this crisis.