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Progressivism New Imperialism In 1867 the United States agreed to purchase Alaska for $7.2 million At the time the purchase was ridiculed and commonly referred to as “Seward’s Folly” After the addition of Alaska the United States adopted an isolationist approach to foreign affairs But with the industrial expansion of the Gilded Age there was a new interest in overseas expansion to create new markets and to provide new raw materials In 1890 Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan wrote The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, 1660-1783, which documented the fact that all great powers had had a strong navy The book started a naval race among the leading world powers, including the United States and was supported by leading political figures like Henry Cabot Lodge, and Theodore Roosevelt By 1900 the United States had the third largest navy (behind Britain and Germany) Newspapers included stories of adventure from exotic locations and found that the public really had an interest and curiosity about foreign affairs Joseph Pulitzer (New York World) and William Randolph Hearst (New York Journal) developed a style of writing known as “yellow journalism” in which stories were sensationalized to attract readers All of this fit nicely with Darwin’s ideas of the survival of the fittest and manifest destiny Hawaii The islands of Hawaii had been of strategic importance for many years and because of the sugar and fruit plantations they had been of economic concern too In 1875 Hawaii and the United States agreed on a trade agreement under which Hawaiian sugar would be sent to America free of duties and in return Hawaii promised not to lease land to a third power The agreement resulted in a boom for sugar producers, most of whom were Americans In 1887 the agreement was modified to allow the United States to maintain a naval base at Pearl Harbor The planter elite used immigrant workers and made fortunes from the sale of sugar Also in 1887 the Americans forced the king to accept a new constitution, which created a constitutional government dominated by Americans In 1890 the McKinley Tariff put all sugar on the duty-free list and subsidized American sugar The Hawaiian economy was devastated In 1891 Queen Liliuokalani became the monarch and tried to regain power from the government In 1893 the white elites on the island seized power, supported by American marines Soon after representatives from the Hawaiian government approach Washington about the possibility of being annexed by the United States The newly elected President Cleveland sent a commissioner to islands to investigate the whole affair It was reported to the commissioner that the marines had acted inappropriately and most Hawaiians did not want annexation Cleveland wanted to restore the queen, but on July 4, 1894 the government proclaimed the Republic of Hawaii, which had a constitution that would allow for annexation by the United States In 1897 President McKinley sent warships to the island to prevent a possible Japanese takeover McKinley could not get the necessary two-thirds votes for annexation in the Senate so he went to both Houses and received a simple majority Hawaii was annexed in 1898 Pan-American Conference (1889) Ever since the Monroe Doctrine of 1823 the United States had had a special interest in Latin America Secretary of State James Blaine tried to initiate closer ties by calling for the Pan-American Conference in 1889 Representatives decided to create an organization for international cooperation between Latin American states and the United States The Monroe’s Doctrine When the Monroe Doctrine was approved it remained on the books was not used In 1895 and 1896 President Cleveland sent Secretary of State Richard Olney to negotiate a border dispute between British Guiana and Venezuela Initially the British refused to recognize the role of the United States The United States threatened to use force if Britain did not recognize the Monroe Doctrine The British conceded because they did not war with the United States at a time when potential problems in South Africa and with Germany were emerging The issue was settled when the arbitrators ruled in favor of Britain and not Venezuela Spanish-American War In 1895, Cubans revolted against Spanish control of the sugar tariff, which had hurt their economy and also against the Spanish government’s continually neglect of the island American public opinion was with the Cuban rebels The rebel leader José Martí was killed by Spanish troops In 1896 the Spanish government sent General Valeriano Weyler to Cuba to crush the revolt General “Butcher” Weyler put all the suspects in detention (reconcentrado) camps in which many hundred died from disease Yellow journalism sensationalized the events and the public cried out for action, but the American government maintained a policy of non-intervention The Maine On February 15 1898, the U.S. battleship Maine mysteriously exploded in Havana Harbor with the deaths of over 260 Americans (Later investigations proved the explosion was an accident) The American public demanded revenge against Spain, “Remember the Maine!” appeared everywhere President McKinley did not want war Assistant secretary of the navy Theodore Roosevelt called the president a coward On April 10, the Spanish virtually surrendered and asked the American government to basically dictate the terms On April 11, 1898, the president asked Congress for war to protect American investment in Cuba Congress declared Cuba independent and demanded the withdrawal of all Spanish troops The Teller Amendment Congress issued the Teller Amendment, which denied American claims on Cuban territory On April 20 the United States started a blockade of northern Cuba – this was an act of war On April 24 the Spanish government declared war on the United States On April 25 the United States declared war on Spain but made it retroactive to April 21! The Philippines In many ways the war was a “splendid little war” It lasted only about 4 months and marked the start of the United States as a world power Theodore Roosevelt had instructed Commodore George Dewey to move his fleet to a position near the Philippines and to engage the Spanish in the event of war On April 30, Dewey’s small fleet attacked the Spanish fleet in Manila Bay Unable to take full control of the land, Dewey was forced to use Filipino insurgents led by Emilio Aguinaldo The Rough Riders When the Spanish navy arrived at Santiago, Cuba the Americans immediately blockaded them American soldiers were ill prepared for combat on the island The most significant military unit was the “Rough Riders,” a volunteer regiment led by Theodore Roosevelt who had left the navy to join the “fun” The Rough Riders gained their greatest fame when they charged up San Juan Hill The Spanish were no match for the Americans, especially at sea The old Spanish navy proved to be easy targets for the newer and more powerful American battleships On July 25 Santiago surrendered and Spain asked for peace The Treaty of Paris On August 12 an armistice was signed and Spain promised to give up Cuba, Puerto Rico would be annexed by the United States, and Manila would be occupied until the issue could be settled Over a quarter of a million men had served during the war – slightly more than 5,000 died Only a few hundred died in battle, the majority died from diseases like typhoid and malaria The Treaty of Paris addressed everything except the Philippines America offered Spain $20 million compensation and added Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines The Treaty of Paris was ratified in the Senate, but only because Democrat William Jennings Bryan argued for its passage The resolution to make the Philippines independent failed Problems with Imperialism Not everyone was happy with imperialism Leading figures such as Mark Twain and Andrew Carnegie joined the Anti-Imperialist League They argued for isolationism and said intervention in Cuba was inconsistent with the American policy of self-determination and foreign involvement would undermine the Monroe Doctrine In 1899, British poet Rudyard Kipling wrote “The White Man’s Burden” espousing the fact that imperialism was virtually a duty Trouble in the Philippines Almost as soon as the Spanish had been removed other problems arose Aguinaldo led the Filipino resistance until he was captured in 1901 Even with Aguinaldo in custody the Filipinos continued a guerilla war, which was best remembered for the brutality exhibited by both sides In 1902 Congress passed legislation making the Philippine islands an “unorganized territory” (In 1934 the Tydings-McDuffie Act offered independence after 10 years Independence became a reality on July 4, 1946) Puerto Rico and Cuba Puerto Rico was intended to give the United States a footing in the Caribbean and afford protection to an eventual canal across the isthmus The Foraker Act of 1900 established a civil government on the island – the residents were not American citizens In 1917 the Jones Act granted the Puerto Rican people American citizenship Imports from Puerto Rico were charged an import duty Businesses claimed that these were unconstitutional since no state could levy a tax against another state In the Insular Cases, the Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution did not apply to the possessions unless mandated by Congress As soon as the Cubans gained their freedom they started to cause trouble for America The Cuban government was weak and the economy was almost in ruins McKinley created a military government to restore order One of the biggest problems was disease – the island was unsanitary and yellow fever was rampant In 1900 Dr. Walter Reed was named head of the Army Yellow Fever Commission and charged with finding the source of the yellow fever and a way to eradicate the problem His research helped find a cure In 1901 the Platt Amendment to the Army Appropriations Bill passed Congress The amendment required Cuba to guarantee never to sign a treaty with a third power and to allow the United States the right to intervene in Cuban politics if the necessity arose One of the most significant parts of the amendment was the requirement for the Cuban government to lease land for a naval station on the island – this became Guantanamo Bay China In 1853 Commodore Matthew Perry had “opened” Japan to the West Quickly becoming the most technologically advanced Asian nation, Japan easily defeated China in the Sino-Japanese War As soon as it was revealed that China was weak other nations began to scramble for influence European intervention in China concerned America, who saw a possible disruption of trade In 1899 Secretary of State John Hay sent the European nations, which outlined American policies for China, this became known as the Open Door policy The agreement was that all countries would trade openly with China – no European accepted or rejected the policy Hay claimed that the policy had been universally accepted In 1900, a group of Chinese nationalists, known as “Boxers” rebelled against foreign intervention in China They attacked the foreign embassies and threatened European and American interests A multi-national force arrived in China and suppressed the rebellion Hay, worried about China being divided between the European powers, sent a second note asking all the other nations to preserve Chinese territorial integrity The Chinese were forced to pay an indemnity of $333 million (America received nearly $11 million) The Election of 1900 The democrats nominated William Jennings Bryan, who ran on a platform against imperialism The Republicans re-nominated McKinley and named Roosevelt as the vice president nominee Roosevelt, a staunch imperialist, took every opportunity to campaign for imperialism and expansionism The Republicans won the election In September 1901 Leon Czolgosz, an anarchist, assassinated McKinley Roosevelt became the new president; he was the youngest president to occupy the White House He was young but also politically very experienced His saying was “walk softly, and carry a big stick” Getting the Canal When he was secretary of the navy Roosevelt realized that there was a serious need for a canal through the isthmus In 1898 the battleship Oregon had been forced to sail all around South America to get to Cuba In the Clayton-Bulwar Treaty of 1850 Britain and the United States agreed to build a canal linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans In the 1880s the French engineer Ferdinand de Lesseps, who had built the Suez Canal, tried to build a Panama Canal but after 20,000 lives and $300 million they quit In 1901 by the Hay-Paunceforte Treaty, the British agreed to forfeit their right to build a canal McKinley appointed an Isthmian Canal Commission to research and report on the viability of the project The Commission reported that a canal through Nicaragua would be cheaper The French canal company, led by Philippe Bunau-Varilla, who had initially wanted $109 million, lowered their price to $40 million Secretary Hay negotiated with Colombia, who controlled Panama, for a six-mile wide canal zone at a cost of $10 million and a rental fee of $250,000 Columbia and the Canal On November 2, 1903, the U.S.S. Nashville arrived in Panama The next day the Panamanians staged revolted against the Columbians Columbians soldiers could not get through the jungle and the American warship intimidated the navy On November 13, Roosevelt met with the first ambassador from Panama - Philippe Bunau-Varilla, who signed the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty, which widened the Canal Zone to ten miles The United States would pay $10 million and $250,000 a year to use the canal “in perpetuity” In 1904, Congress created the Isthmian Canal Commission to supervise construction of the canal Roosevelt told the Commission to “make the dirt fly” The biggest problem was not political, it was because the Canal Zone was so unsanitary and because of mosquitoes, a death trap to Americans In 1906, Roosevelt became the first president to leave America when he visited the canal The canal opened in 1914 and linked the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans Roosevelt Corollary (1904) Because Roosevelt worried about possible European intervention in Latin America he issued the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine The Corollary said that the United States was justified in intervening in Latin American affairs to prevent the involvement of other nations Russo-Japanese War (1904) In 1904, Japan attacked Russia, but neither side had enough strength to win Theodore Roosevelt helped negotiate the peace treaty at Portsmouth, New Hampshire in 1905 Both sides felt betrayed by Roosevelt and the event cost America two possible allies In 1906 Roosevelt received the Nobel Peace Prize The Root-Takahira Agreement (1905) In 1905 the United States and Japan signed the Taft-Katsura Agreement, which recognized Japanese control of Korea - in return the Japanese stated they had no designs on adding the Philippines In the Root-Takahira Agreement both countries agreed to respect each other’s territorial possessions in the Pacific and to uphold the Open Door policy of China The Reform Movement The reform movement of the Progressive age grew out of frustration with the Robber barons and the greed and social injustices of the Gilded Age They had evolved from the Populist movements of the Gilded Age and their goal was to improve the quality of life for the working class Roosevelt called those who exposed and wrote about scandal and corruption muckrakers In 1894, Henry Demarest Lloyd wrote about the corruption of the Standard Oil Company in Wealth Against Commonwealth Danish immigrant Jacob A. Riis, wrote about life in the slums of New York in How the Other Half Lives The most popular way to have a story published was in weekly or monthly magazines such as McClure’s and Cosmopolitan In 1902, Lincoln Steffens wrote a series of articles in McClure’s entitled “The Shame of the Cities,” on corruption in local government In 1904, Ida M. Tarbell wrote History of the Standard Oil Company Articles appeared about all aspects of life from meatpacking to politics The muckrakers were able to gain public support by exposing the ills of society, but few offered solutions What they did believe was that the cure for a weak democracy was actually more democracy By 1910 the muckrakers had lost most of their appeal because they could no longer sensationalize stories Plus banks and other investment companies were putting pressure on publishers to dilute the attacks on the very industries that were keeping the country strong and rich Feminism and Prohibition In 1890 Elizabeth Cady Stanton organized the National American Woman Suffrage Association Other women like Carrie Chapman Catt, soon joined the effort to gain the vote Ida B. Wells formed the National Association of Colored Women in 1896 to improve the conditions of black women One of the main issues of the period was Prohibition Many blamed the problems seen in society on alcohol In 1869 the National Prohibition Party was formed, soon other organizations like the Women’s Christian Temperance Union (1874) demanded the prohibition of alcohol In 1893, the Anti-Saloon League was formed While these organizations would not achieve their aim, they did focus the national attention on the problems caused by alcohol and they laid the groundwork for the actual prohibition of alcohol In 1913 the Anti- Saloon League endorsed the idea of an amendment to the Constitution prohibiting alcohol In 1919, the 18th Amendment prohibited the sale and drinking of alcohol Social Reform In 1905, in Lochner v. New York the Supreme Court invalidated a ten-hour workday However, in 1911, after a fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company in New York City, which killed 146 workers, local government began stricter enforcement of building codes and closer factory inspections In Muller v. Oregon (1908) the Supreme Court upheld legislation for a ten-hour workday for women In 1917, in Bunting v. Oregon that was expanded to include men and women The Square Deal Roosevelt was very different from his predecessors in many ways One of the biggest differences involved his interaction with big business Nearly all-previous presidents had supported big business, Roosevelt choose a middle course and advocated a square deal for both sides When coal miners went on strike in 1902, Roosevelt called the union representatives and mine owners to the White House to mediate the dispute When the mine owners refused to compromise Roosevelt threatened to use federal troops to extract the coal Eventually the mine owners were forced to make concessions including a wage increase Roosevelt saw the trusts as being out of control and in need of regulation The Interstate Commerce Act (1887) was ineffective against the trusts In 1903 Congress passed the Elkins Act, which made it illegal for railroads to accept rebates for the shipment of goods In 1906 Congress passed the Hepburn Act, which enforced the Interstate Commerce Act and provided, amongst other things, for the railroads to keep up-to-date records of transactions Meatpacking In 1906, Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle was published It was a brutal story about immigrants set in the meatpacking districts of the Chicago The story was horrible, but equally horrid were the unhygienic conditions in the factories Roosevelt read the book and sent federal agents to Chicago to investigate The agents found everything to be the same as Sinclair had described The Meat Inspection Act of 1906, stated that meat shipped over state lines would be subject to federal inspection from “corral to can” On the same day Congress also enacted the Pure Food and Drug Act aimed at preventing misrepresenting or mislabeling of foods and drugs Conservation In 1872 Yellowstone National Park was created In 1881 Congress created a Division of Forestry as part of the Department of Agriculture People were becoming aware of the need to preserve the environment and one of the biggest advocates of preservation was Roosevelt The Forest Reserve Act of 1891, authorized the president to set aside land to be protected as national parks –million of acres of forest were rescued or excluded from settlement Roosevelt appointed Gifford Pinchot to head of the federal Division of Forestry The Newlands Act of 1902 initiated irrigation projects for the western states The 1908 Election In 1908 Roosevelt felt it was time to move on and picked his Secretary of War Howard Taft to be his successor Roosevelt believed Taft would simply continue his policies The Democrats chose William Jennings Bryan Taft defeated Bryan 321 to 162 The Socialist Eugene V. Debs came fourth with nearly 421,000 votes Roosevelt packed his bags and went to Africa to hunt lions leaving Taft, the heaviest president ever, in the White House Taft loved eating and having fun; he hated politics – the driving force was his wife Unfortunately “Nellie” Taft suffered a stroke soon after they entered the White House Dollar Diplomacy Taft believed that the best way to stabilize foreign countries was with American investment This policy was called “Dollar Diplomacy” In 1909 Taft cabled the Chinese government offering to finance railroads in the Yangtze Valley In 1910 American bankers invested in several Caribbean nations to support weak governments Investors spent million on the national bank of Haiti Congress provided loans to Nicaragua and Honduras – even when the Senate refused to agree to such deals, Taft persuaded private bankers to step in In 1912 the president of Nicaragua asked Taft for help in suppressing troublemakers on the island American soldiers were sent and stayed until 1925 Trust busting Taft continued the trust busting started by Roosevelt, but he was far more aggressive In 1911, the Supreme Court ordered the break up of the Standard Oil Company Taft initiated legislation to bust U.S. Steel, even though Roosevelt had approved the merger Roosevelt saw the move as a personal attack The Mann-Elkins Act of 1910 gave the Interstate Commerce Commission power to oversee telephone, telegraph and cable rates In 1913 Congress passed the Sixteenth Amendment authorizing the government to collect income tax Taft and the Republicans In 1908 Taft had promised to lower the tariff In 1909 when the Payne-Aldrich Tariff came to Congress the Republicans amended the legislation to actually raise tariffs on imports When Taft signed the act he angered the Progressives, but he further alienated himself when he defended the act The Progressives like Gifford Pinchot, the Head of the Forestry Service, a man appointed by Roosevelt Secretary of the Interior Richard Ballinger opened public land in Alaska to private developers Pinchot criticized Ballinger, who had been appointed by Taft Taft stood by Ballinger and fired Pinchot After the elections of 1910 it was obvious the Republican Party was split: The conservatives supported Taft and the Progressives who hoped Roosevelt would return The Election of 1912 The Democrats nominated the one-time president of Princeton University and governor of New Jersey, Woodrow Wilson Wilson had endorsed progressive measures in New Jersey and the Democratic candidate denounced political bosses and special interests in what he called a New Freedom platform The Republicans re-nominated Taft, after excluding Roosevelt from the convention Progressive Republicans considered nominating La Follette, but after he looked ineffective many switched the support to Roosevelt In February, Roosevelt officially entered the race as the Progressive candidate and wrote to all the governors telling them that Taft had sold out the Square Deal and his New Nationalism platform would achieve social justice The fourth candidate was Socialist Eugene V. Debs Debs had marginal support, even though the Socialists were gaining strength Few people liked Taft In reality the election was between Roosevelt’s New Nationalism and Wilson’s New Freedom During the campaigning in Milwaukee, Roosevelt was shot by a would-be assassin The bullet went through his spectacles case and stopped in his right lung Roosevelt continued his campaign and delivered a speech before going to the hospital He declared himself “fit as a bull moose” When the popular votes were counted Wilson had 42% Roosevelt had 27% Taft had 23% Debs had 6% Taft and Roosevelt had given the election to Wilson In 1921 Taft was appointed Chief Justice of the Supreme Court by President Harding – the only president to serve on the Supreme Court Wilson: The President In is inaugural address President Wilson promised to attack tariffs, banking, and trusts On his first day in the White House he called a special session of Congress and addressed it in person to lower the tariff In 1913 Congress passed the Underwood-Simmons Tariff, which reduced import duties on nearly 1,000 items The act also passed a graduated income tax, with the highest rate being 7% to increase internal revenue Wilson believed the banks spent too much time and resources trying to keep Wall Street happy rather than serving the general public In 1914 Congress passed the Federal Reserve Act, which created 12 regional banks supervised by the Federal Reserve Board In 1914 Congress also passed the Clayton Antitrust Act, which strengthened the Sherman Antitrust Act and prohibited unions from being prosecuted as trusts and outlawed price discrimination And, the Federal Trade Commission, which had the power the regulate trade and investigate unfair practices Wilson and Progressive Policies Wilson supported the idea of women’s suffrage at the state level, but he refused to consider an amendment Equally, he did little for the African-American and even shared some of the racist views that were prevalent – although he did denounce the Ku Klux Klan In 1914 he signed the La Follette Seamen’s act, which improved the working condition on American ships Federal Farm Loan Act of 1916 made credit available to farmers at low rates of interest The Warehouse Act of 1916 permitted short-term loans on the security of staple crops The Federal Highway Act of 1916 provided matching federal dollars for state dollars for highways that met certain conditions The Keating-Owen Child Labor Act prohibited goods made by children under fourteen from being sold across state lines (later found unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in Hammer v. Dagenhart in 1918) The 1916 Adamson Act established an eight-hour workday with additional pay for overtime work Foreign Policy Wilson denounced “dollar diplomacy” and proposed a new policy named “missionary diplomacy” He withdrew America from the Six-Power Consortium, which was preparing to give a massive loan to China In 1916 he signed the Jones Act granting full territorial status to the Philippines and promising independence when a stable government was established (July 4, 1946) Wilson sent American troops to Haiti in 1915 In 1916, he sent marines to the Dominican Republic to help suppress troublemakers Mexico In 1810 Father Hidalgo led Mexico to independence from Spain But once independent the country was plagued by incompetent leadership and revolution In 1910 President Porfirio Díaz controlled the country as a military dictator who suppressed opposition and treated his followers with favors In 1911 revolutionary forces led by Francisco Madero took over the capital and Díaz fled Quickly General Victoriano Huerta replaced Madero Wilson was caught in a dilemma – intervene and help overthrow Huerta, which would contradict his principles; or acknowledge Huerta and his immoral regime In 1914 Wilson agreed to allow the sale of arms to insurgents led by Venustiano Carraza of the Constitutionalist party When a group of American sailors were arrested in Tampico the American government demanded an apology, even though the sailors had walked into a restricted area The Mexican commander issued an apology and released the prisoners almost immediately The American naval commander then demanded that the Mexicans salute the American flag Congress authorized the naval commander to use force to make Huerta comply Marines landed at Vera Cruz to stop the shipment of arms from being delivered to Huerta 19 marines were killed; approximately 200 Mexicans were killed The ABC powers—Argentina, Brazil, and Chile— offered to mediate the situation Huerta refused but was forced from office Carranza succeeded Huerta As the trouble spread groups of bandits tried to take advantage of the situation The most notorious bandit was Pancho Villa In 1916, Villa hijacked a train and murdered 16 Americans to establish his reputation as anti-American When that did not work he crossed the border into New Mexico and killed some more Wilson asked Carranza for permission to cross the border and sent General John J. Pershing to capture Villa In 1917 Pershing, unable to capture Villa, was ordered home World War One In 1914, Austria declared war on Serbia to start the First World War Because the alliance system, within days most countries in Europe are at war Wilson issued a neutrality proclamation and urged Americans not to get involved Many Americans were from Germany and others were from Ireland – both hated the English However most Americans supported the Allied Powers (Britain etc.) At the start of the war the conflict seriously damaged the American economy and threatened to cause a depression But gradually the Allies purchased more and more goods from the United States When the British asked for loans, William Jennings Bryan said that complying with such a request would violate America’s policy of neutrality Yet Wilson secretly approved short-term loans In 1915 the United States openly extended long-term loans and the financier J. P. Morgan loaned the British government $500 million Still American hoped to remain neutral Submarine Warfare As the war progressed the Germans became more desperate to stop supplies reaching Britain In 1915 the Germans declared the waters around Britain a war zone, and ships would be subject to attack The German use of U-boats proved deadly After the Germans sank some American ships and several Americans had been killed, Americans were warned not to enter the war zone In May, 1915 the British liner Lusitania was attacked by a submarine and over 1,000 people were killed including 128 Americans The American public screamed for war The German government warned the submarines not to sink passenger liners In March 1916 the Germans sank the French steamer, Sussex, injuring two Americans When Wilson threatened to break off diplomatic relations with Germany the German government promised, in the Sussex pledge, not to attack passenger or merchant ships – meaning the submarine policy was basically finished The Election of 1916 In 1916, Republicans would have liked to have Roosevelt back, but when he left the party in 1912 he sealed his fate Instead the Republicans chose Charles Evans Hughes, who was conspicuous by his evasiveness on the issues The Democratic again chose Wilson, who ran on the platform of social reform and neutrality using the slogan “He kept us out of war” Wilson just beat Hughes, 277 to 254 – the popular vote was decided by a difference of half a million votes In 1917 the German government once again started unrestricted submarine warfare On February 3, 1917, Wilson told Congress that the United States had broken off diplomatic ties with Germany Zimmerman Note In February word reached the American government that the British had intercepted a note from German Foreign Secretary Arthur Zimmerman to his minister in Mexico offering Mexico the possibility of an alliance If Mexico caused problems for the United States then Germany would return Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona When the note was published in the newspaper the American public demanded revenge In March 1917 the Tsar of Russia was overthrown in a revolution, in November the Bolsheviks established their control On March 20, 1917, after the Germans had sunk five American ships, Wilson asked his cabinet if war was an option On April 2, at a special session, Wilson asked Congress for a war resolution against Germany The measure passed in both Houses and was signed by the president on April 6, 1917