The Spanish and the Cubans started fighting in 1895. This was because the Cubans wanted their freedom from Spain, but Spain refused to give it to them and Cuba resorted to violence. Fueled by the sinking of the Maine a few years later, the United States entered the war on the side of the Cubans.
In McKinley's War Message, he told congress that the raging war was now affecting not only soldiers, but american citizens as well. The atrocities in the war were absolutely appalling to people. The war was having an impact on American economy too. America had much trade with Cuba, and the war weakened Cuba's trade as well as the American economy. The war dragged on for 3 years with no clear winner. McKinley stated that it had gone on long enough and it was time for America to choose: Either stay a neutral nation or pick a side and act as a military ally. He believed that it was about time that the US intervened because the bloodshed needed to be stopped. Our trade, freedom, and the citizens of Cuba needed protecting.
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