McKinley's War Message
- 3 years of fighting between the Spanish imperialists and the Cuban rebels
- U.S. decided to interfere in favor of Cuba
- wanted Spanish reach an armistice with the Cubans
- angry public in the US demanded a declaration of war from Congress
- despite Spain's intention to cooperate
- McKinley first gives three reasons why the war in Cuba is of American concern
- fighting has been going on for over a half of a century
- on and off war has caused a lot of American capital invested in Cuba to be lost
- neither party will be able to win a definitive victory
- states that the U.S. has limited options concerning the conflict
- interfere as a neutral party imposing a compromise
- or as an ally (for one side)
- also uses the sinking of the U.S.S. Maine as a sign that the state of affairs in Cuba is intolerable
- final statement is that the Spanish government is expected to cooperate with the Americans
- reaching an armistice
- U.S. Congress declared war on Spain five days later
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