Quote Originally Posted by AmericanPride View Post
How then is the narrative of American isolationism reconciled with the country's history of expansionism?
As Selil mentioned, it has much more to do with a geographic focus. Kagan seems inclined to confuse rhetoric with action, and in most cases the public as a whole was opposed to expansion outside what was defined in their minds as our geographic sphere. The war with Mexico was opposed by a significant segment of the population (mainly what was then called the Old Northeast) on both economic and moral grounds, as was perceived imperialism in the Philippines and other locations. We meddled in other locations from time to time, but we very seldom stayed (as opposed to the European experience). It's important when looking at this stuff to draw a clear line between the rantings in newspapers of the period and the actual opinions of the populace (when they can be determined) and actions of policy-makers. Many of our foreign "adventures" were triggered by a perception that a European power might be trying to establish a foothold close by.