The Rhetoric of Empire: President William McKinley’s Justification for the Annexation of the Philippines

Following the Spanish-American War in 1898, the United States faced a major decision that would influence its future as a global power: whether to annex the Philippine archipelago. This paper examines how President William McKinley justified annexation to the US public despite widespread public opposition and a deeply divided Senate. It argues that McKinley justified annexation by presenting it as a moral responsibility, which masked his broader geopolitical interests in the region. Drawing on primary sources including McKinley’s own recorded statements, his Benevolent Assimilation Proclamation, Rudyard Kipling’s “The White Man’s Burden,” and the public statements of the Anti-Imperialist League, alongside a range of secondary historical scholarship, the paper traces McKinley’s path from indecision to full annexation. It also considers how events such as the outbreak of the Philippine-American War influenced congressional support for ratifying the Treaty of Paris. Rather than being driven by a single motive, the decision to annex the Philippines reflected a combination of geopolitical ambitions, racial ideology, and beliefs about America’s role in the world. By examining the arguments used to gain public and congressional support, this paper illustrates how moral justifications were used to defend American imperial expansion at the turn of the twentieth century. Keywords: William McKinley, Philippine annexation, American imperialism, Benevolent Assimilation, Spanish-American War, Treaty of Paris, Anti-Imperialist League, civilizing mission, The White Man’s Burden, Manifest Destiny, US foreign policy, Filipino sovereignty