William McKinley was born January 19, 1843 in Niles, Ohio. He married Ida Saxton. “After the deaths, in quick succession, of her mother and her two infant daughters early in their marriage, Ida’s health rapidly deteriorated, and she spent the rest of her life as a chronic invalid.” (History) McKinley …show more content…
“William McKinley was considered a mediocre President, a chief executive who was controlled by his political cronies and who was pressured into war with Spain by the press.” (Miller) He was the president the whole duration of the war. In the 100-day war, the United States destroyed the Spanish fleet outside Santiago harbor in Cuba, seized Manila in the Philippines, and occupied Puerto Rico. (William) He led the war extremely well.”The peace treaty between the United States and Spain granted Cuba its independence—although the island became a U.S. protectorate—and gave the United States control of former Spanish colonies, the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and Guam.” (Miller) Without McKinley’s choice to come to Cuba’s aid, there is no telling what would have become of Cuba. Where it becomes controversial is when Filipino nationalists tried to get in brutal conflict with the US because they wanted to define the American rule. In light of domestic affairs “true to his campaign promises, McKinley called a special session of Congress to revise the tariff upward. In 1896, customs duties earned $160 million in revenue in the United States—the largest component of government income.” (Miller) He got a lot of positive and negative remarks about bringing the tariff up, but $160 million is a lot of money with the nation is in need. He stayed close to his political campaign goals. In light of foreign affairs “McKinley authorized