Dbq Imperialism

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Conflict of the late 19th century and early 20th century caused America to end its isolation and become a world power. In the late 19th century many Americans started to believe in imperialism, militarism, nationalism, and alliances opposed to the previous beliefs of the country that they wanted to remain isolated and to not get involved with any foreign affairs. These topics, however, relate to how the Great War began, and how the U.S. was dragged into it. In 1909, Taft wrote, “To-day, more than ever before, American capital is seeking investment in foreign countries.” This, along with many other reasons, is why the US decided to reach out of its isolation. Imperialism, which is the term for building empires by imposing political and economic …show more content…

He believes that the government should protect American interests, and that the government’s responsibilities have increased. The foreign trade also caused countries to be brought closer together and conflict that could be dangerous. Taft believes that in considering whether an American enterprise should be supported in a particular country, the government should be given the full weight (not only to the “national, as opposed to the individual benefits to accrue, but also to the fact whether or not the Government of the country in question is in its administration and in its diplomacy faithful to the principles of moderation, equity, and justice upon which alone depend international credit, in diplomacy as well as in finance.”). The main goal that William Howard Taft wanted to express through this document was that he wanted the government to have responsibility and a voice of the issue of foreign trade, and that he believed that it would be in the nation’s best interest to invest in other countries’ economies and financials. As America became more involved with foreign countries after ending their isolationism, people started to realise that it would help the U.S. to trade and invest in many foreign countries. One of the causes of the Spanish American war was that the US had invested in Cuba’s sugar industry, and the Americans wanted to defend this country. America’s economy changed positively after they started to expand to other parts of the world in trade, alliances, and

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