alternatehistory.com

Here's the update! Also correcting the number on the last one since I had two 93s, and added some footnotes to the New Left update a few pages back since I forgot to do that.

Part Ninety-Five: Testing the Waters

The American Navy: The early twentieth century saw the first true expansion of the United States navy into a modern military force. While the United States had seen previous major naval action during the war of 1812 and the National War, the navy had been cut in size during the latter 19th century and remained mostly a brown-water navy. However, with the increasing involvement of the United States in the Caribbean and the naval arms race between Great Britain and France, the government recognized the need for a stronger navy that was better capable of force projection. The major expansion was headed by president McKinley's appointment of Admiral Joshua Talbott as Secretary of the Navy in 1902.

Prior to being chosen as Secretary of the Navy, Talbott had served in the United States navy during the National War and later was a Representative for eight years from 1885 to 1891 and 1895 to 1897. With his distinguished naval career and representing Baltimore during his terms in Congress, Talbott developed a great concern for improving the navy that extended into his service as Navy Secretary. During the seven years that Talbott served as Secretary, he consolidated the navy into three larger fleets centered on the Atlantic, the Caribbean, and the Pacific. During this time, the United States also constructed several modern battleships to strengthen the navy's blue-water capabilities. Talbott also has the distinction of serving as Secretary of the Navy under both presidents McKinley and Roosevelt.


Tariff Wars: The other major issue that McKinley faced when he came into office in 1901 was over tariffs. Previously, the Democratic Party had been for lower tariffs. But with McKinley and other Eagle Democrats now dictating the party platform, the Democratic Party switched policy and argued for raising tariffs. In accordance with the platform, New York Representative John Wilbur Wright proposed the Tariff of 1902 which would raise tariffs, particularly on manufactured goods, wool, and sugar. The bill was strongly geared toward tariffs that were favorable to the Northeast and Cuba and quickly gained the support of these Congressmen. However, the tariff faced tough opposition from many Progressives and Republicans in the House. Many Republicans and Progressives objected to the tariff in general, but in the South, even some Democrats opposed the bill[1]. The concerns of the South focused especially to how much the bill favored the Northeast in the tariffs rates that were changed. With this backlash in Congress, the wrangling over the Tariff of 1902 began.

Some of the major opposition to the Tariff of 1902 in the House of Representatives came from Congressmen in the South. Champ Clark of Missouri, Alfred Taylor of Tennessee, and other Republicans in the South voiced their concerns that the bill would raise consumer prices in the country and hurt American agricultural industries. Even a few Southern Democrats opposed the bill when it was first proposed. However, after several heated debates in Congress over the tariffs despite McKinley's personal approval of the bill, it remained in the House. It was not until late in the year that Democratic Congressman Anselm McLaurin proposed an amendment that also raised sufficient tariffs on agricultural goods. The Tariff of 1902 finally gained enough support to pass through the House and the Senate, and was signed by President McKinley in November of 1902. The Tariff also included a specific rise in rates for imports from British North America, partially in response to a similar rise in tariffs in Canada[2].

[1] Partially due to the few Bourbon Democrats still in the House.
[2] MacDonald's tariff policy still arises in Canada in TTL.