canal, and left Congress to debate it.” In 1914, the U.S. would finish and open the Panama Canal, providing a link between east and west. Another reason for U.S. intervention was the idea of “dollar diplomacy”. This phrase was coined by President Taft. This policy used diplomacy to protect American interests abroad. Taft would use “dollar diplomacy”, and the Roosevelt Corollary in Nicaragua and other Latin American countries to further protect American business investments. These actions of intervention in Latin America were part of American imperialism.The U.S. got a late start in the race for trading rights with China, and with the U.S. now in the Philippines, the race became economically crucial for America. By this time, Great Britain, France, Russia, Germany, and Japan claimed exclusive trading rights with China within their sphere of influence. Some, like Japan, even claimed parts of China as their own. In order to level out the playing field Secretary of State John Hay sent diplomatic dispatches to these nations, urging an Open Door Policy, in which there would be equal trading rights with China. All the dispatches came back to Hay with their corresponding nations endorsing the proposal. However, before the policy was enacted, the Chinese tried to expel the “foreign devils” from their homeland in what was to be called the Boxer Rebellion. This nationalist rebellion was put down by an international police force including 2,500 U.S. troops. Hay again asked the nations to allow China to pres...
