The Mexican-American War, Were We Justified?
Mexico had rejected a $15 million cash-for-land deal offered by the US. The area included what now covers the states of California, Arizona, New Mexico and parts of Colorado and Utah. This territory was Mexican, but only nominally; control over the area was slight, and open to intrusion. Irritated at the rebuff, the US struck back in1845 by annexing Texas, a territory long disputed and fought over by both countries. Mexico responded by severing diplomatic relations. U.S. President Polk further provoked Mexico by moving troops south to the Rio Grande, a river that historically was considered well within Mexico. U.S. and Mexican troops skirmished across the river, leading Polk to declare to Congress on May 11, 1846, that “…the cup of forbearance has been exhausted,” and that “American blood has been spilled on American soil.”
(Source: Eisenhower’s So Far From God, pages 49-55)
The U.S.-Mexican War is the pivotal chapter in the history of North America. It is the war that sealed the fates of it's two participants. For the United States, the War garnered huge amounts of territory and wealth, bootstrapping the fledgling democracy onto the world...
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