alternatehistory.com

Alright, it's apparently Philippines night so bear with us.

"The negotiators then turned to the question of the Philippines. Spanish negotiators were determined to hang onto all they could, hoping to cede only Mindanao and perhaps the Sulu Islands. On the American side, Chairman Day had once recommended the acquisition of only naval base in Manila as a 'hitching post'. Others had recommended retaining just the island of Luzon. In discussions with its advisers, though, the commission concluded that Spain, if it retained part of the Philippines, would be likely to sell that part to another European power and that this would likely be troublesome for America. On November 25, the American Commission cabled President McKinley for explicit instructions."

What if McKinley gave up on insisting that the whole archipelago be ceded to the USA and ended up accepting what Spain put on the table? How would this affect the history of both nations? Taft for one probably won't be relegated here as Governor-General.
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