Why Did The United States Join World War I?

During WWI the United States try their hardest to stay neutral despite many threats on Americans, including many casualties on the Lusitania, they succeed in their goal of neutrality until they get word of the Zimmerman Telegraph. According to the WWI Timeline notes, the Zimmerman Telegraph was written by the “German foreign minister” to invite Mexico to become an ally of Germany. If Mexico were to accept, Germany would help gain back “the “lost” land” of New Mexico, Arizona, and California. This telegraph was a direct threat on American land, and would bring the war “closer to home” for the U.S. As well as being a threat on territory, Americans would use this telegraph as a way of convincing Americans to “protest” for war. On “March 1, 1917 the text is published on the front pages of newspapers across America.” The Zimmerman Telegraph was the main reason the United States joined the war being a threat on land and a major persuader for Americans all across the U.S.
According to the Britannica Encyclopedia, Germany’s army was “restricted to 100,000 men; the general staff was eliminated; the manufacture of armored vehicles, and poison gas was forbidden; and only a small number of specified factories could make weapons or munitions.” Along with all of those restrictions, Germany was forced to pay the Allies thirty-two billion dollars. All of these restrictions and fines for Germany was a large setback and aggravated Germany for being put to blame for all of this. All of this aggression was built up for many years and eventually lead to the outbreak of