In "Divine Mission"!


On December 2, 1823, US President James Monroe



... proclaims the so-called "broad features of a long-term foreign policy" of the United States in his annual "State of the Union" address to Congress:

Mr. Monroe divides the world into two political spheres (original: "Two Spheres") ...:





According to his definition, the "eastern sphere" is Europe and everything around it (including Asia and Africa)! The USA would not interfere in future matters and conflicts in this "sphere"!



Nor would they seek to acquire colonies there.

Much more important for the world, however, is what Monroe has to say about the second - western sphere:



This is practically proclaimed the "backyard of the USA", in which they can do whatever they want in the future.

European powers have to stay out of there in the future and to forego any colonization efforts and dominant political influence in all countries that the USA assigns to this "western sphere" - namely everything on the American double continent including the Caribbean!





In addition, Monroe threatens US military intervention in the event that the European powers ignore these "political principles" ...:



The "Monroe Doctrine" is in the world!



**contunued next post**

Part II

Exactly 23 years later to the day, on December 2, 1845, another US President, James Knox Polk ...



... adds a small - but not unimportant! - Appendix to the "Monroe Doctrine":

Also in a "State of The Union" address to Congress, Knox announced that the USA would "aggressively expand" its "sphere in the West" (quote).

Mr. Polk justifies this with the fact that the USA would correspond to "their divine mission for expansion" (quote).

The direct consequence of this "little Apopendix" to the "Monroe Doctrine" is the annexation of Texas ...





... the war against Mexico...





... the war to "liberate" Cuba from the Spaniards ...









... and its transformation into a kind of extra-territorial casino and brothel for US citizens, the bloody "acquisition" of the Philippines ...





... and of Santo Domingo...



... but above all the almost complete extermination of the Native Americans ...:









How one could justify all of this with some "divine mission" is beyond my knowledge (and my understanding) ...!

Lol, Martin. Still a good one.

Those 19th Century political cartoonists were great, if completely cliché-ridden.

Phil