War Message

President Woodrow Wilson won the 1916 re-election largely because he had thus far kept the US out of World War I. Yet when Germany resumed unrestricted submarine warfare against US vessels in 1917, Wilson approached Congress with a change of heart.

“The world must be made safe for democracy,” he said as he asked them to vote for a declaration of war. Four days later, both the House and Senate passed their formal agreement with Wilson in overwhelming numbers.

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