McKinley was America’s 25th president serving between 1897 and 1901. McKinley had a calm, laid-back demeanor which caused many people to underestimate his very capable and efficient management style. He was also the last Civil War veteran to be President and he had 20 years of political experience under his belt in Congress. As he assumed the presidency, the depression of 1893 was running its course and things were looking up economically. McKinley’s term was most defined by two things: the Spanish American War and his unfortunate assassination (the third president meeting this fate). The human suffering and brutality suffered by the Cubans under Spanish control was too much for the American people to stomach. War became inevitable. But not only for humanitarian reasons. The U.S. needed to claim its own overseas military power for its own expansionist self-interests. Highly influential on issues of foreign policy was McKinley’s Secretary of the Navy, none other than Theodore Roosevelt. When the USS Maine exploded (for reasons unknown), it became the perfect excuse to go to war. TR left his government post to create the “Rough Riders” and his fame earned him a place as McKinley’s running mate in the 1900 election (which they won). Of course, this meant that the often controversial Teddy Roosevelt was just “one heartbeat from the presidency”. To the dismay of TR’s foes, McKinley was shot and killed in 1901 by a crazy man upset about the economic disparity of the rich and poor in the U.S.
