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We need Hawaii just as much and a good deal more than we did California. It is manifest destiny.

— William McKinley Remark to personal secretary George Cortelyou (1898)

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Fate

More quotes by William McKinley

Our earnest prayer is that God will graciously vouchsafe prosperity, happiness, and peace to all our neighbors, and like blessings to all the peoples and powers of earth.

The American flag has not been planted on foreign soil to acquire more territory but for humanity's sake.

Expositions are the timekeepers of progress.

War should never be entered upon until every agency of peace has failed.

The mission of the United States is one of benevolent assimilation.

All William McKinley quotes →

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One country, one constitution, one destiny.

Daniel Webster

We may not have chosen the time, but the time has chosen us.

John Lewis

Destiny is not a matter of chance; it is a matter of choice. It is not a thing to be waited for; it is a thing to be achieved.

William Jennings Bryan

“Destiny,” said John. “The ghastliest word a man can speak.”

Poul Anderson The Corridors of Time (1965)

Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: William McKinley (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.