James Knox Polk: The Mexican War

Although James Knox Polk doubled the size of the nation, he is rarely acknowledged by modern historians because of his machinations in initiating the start of the Mexican War. Without his efforts, however, America would be cut off at the Missouri River, exclude Texas, and have a disparate legacy of slavery and race relations as known today (Merry 17). Polk’s presidency was characterized by rapid expansion of American territory through war and treaties, as was William McKinley's. In McKinley’s period, as a consewuence of the Spanish American War, the United States acquired dominance of Hawaii, the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and Cuba. Of course, while there were significant differences between Polk’s and McKinley’s presidencies, it’s nevertheless
true that both of them resulted in expanded American influence and territorial expansion.