American Foreign Policy

1
American Foreign Policy

• A Historical Overview

2
First Stage Isolation ExpansionWashingtons
Farewell Address

• The great rule of conduct for us in regard to
  foreign nations is in extending our commercial
  relations, to have with them as little political
  connection as possible.

• It is our true policy to steer clear of permanent
  alliances with any portion of the foreign world

3
First Stage Isolation ExpansionLouisiana
Purchase

• 1803
• Got France out of North America.
• Allowed for U.S. Expansion.
• Manifest Destiny

4
First Stage Isolation ExpansionWar of 1812
(1812-1815)

• British interfering with American trade.
• Pressing Soldiers
• Trade embargo
• American desire to capture and incorporate
  Canada.
• British refusal to surrender western forts as
  called for in Treaty of Paris.

James Madison
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First Stage Isolation ExpansionMonroe
Doctrine (1823)

• Told European Powers to stay out of the Western
  Hemisphere.
• No more colonizing.
• Dont mess with sovereign nations here.

James Monroe
6
First Stage Isolation ExpansionMexico-American
War

• Precipitated by Americans moving to Mexico,
  declaring independence in Texas (1836).
• Texas became a U.S. state in 1845.
• Mexico never accepted the loss of territory.

James Polk
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2nd Stage Isolationist Colonial
PowerSpanish-American War (1898)

• Cubans battling for independence from Spain.
• Hearst reported Spanish atrocities, beating drum
  for war.
• U.S. intervened.
• Ended up as a colonial power, owning Puerto Rico,
  the Philippines, etc.

• Resulted in war with Philippines, as we tried to
  take control.
• 1899-1913.
• Perhaps as many as 1 million Filipinos died.
• U.S. burned entire villages.
• Independence granted in 1946.

William McKinley
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2nd Stage Isolationist Colonial PowerWorld War I

• At first a purely European war.
• Wilsons campaign slogan He kept us out of the
  war.
• German submarines sinking U.S. merchant ships led
  to U.S. entry.
• U.S. de-mobilized immediately following the war.

Woodrow Wilson
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3rd Stage World PowerWorld War II

• U.S. did not want to get involved in European or
  Asian wars.
• FDR had to secretly get us involved against
  Germany.
• After the war, U.S. did not demobilize.

Franklin Roosevelt
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3rd Stage World PowerInterventions Since World
War II

• Korean War (1950-1953)

Harry Truman
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3rd Stage World PowerInterventions Since World
War II

• Vietnam War (1965-1973)

Richard Nixon
Lyndon Johnson
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• More to come, maybe!