Read the passage from American Experience, by PBS:

Question

Polk started out by trying to buy the land. He sent an American diplomat, John Slidell, to Mexico City to offer $30 million for it. But the Mexican government refused to even meet with Slidell. Polk grew frustrated. Determined to acquire the land, he sent American troops to Texas in January of 1846 to provoke the Mexicans into war.

When the Mexicans fired on American troops in April 25, 1846, Polk…declared, "[Mexico] has invaded our territory and shed American blood upon American soil," and sent the order for war to Congress on May 11.

The act was a questionable one. Many Northerners believed that Polk, a Southerner, was trying to gain land for the slaveholding South. Other Americans simply thought it was wrong to use war to take land from Mexico.

…Ulysses S. Grant…would later call the war "one of the most unjust ever waged by a stronger against a weaker nation. It was an instance of a republic following the bad example of European monarchies, in not considering justice in their desire to acquire additional territory."

PBS.org. (n.d.). The Mexican American War. American Experience. Retrieved November 30, 2021,

Question Categorize each quote from the passage in the chart below.

Decide whether each quote more effectively supports the idea that the war was justified, or that the war was not justified.

1. Justified
2. Not Justified

-"Polk started out by trying to buy the land. He sent an American diplomat, John Slidell, to Mexico City to offer $30 million for it. But the Mexican government refused to even meet with Slidell" (PBS.org, n.d.). (Justified or Not Justified)
- "... Ulysses S. Grant... would later call the war 'one of the most unjust ever waged by a stronger against a weaker nation. It was an instance of a republic following the bad example of European monarchies, in not considering justice in their desire to acquire additional territory'" (PBS.org, n.d.). (Justified or Not Justified)
- " Polk... declared, '[Mexico] has invaded our territory and shed American blood upon American soil,' and sent the order for war to Congress on May 11" (PBS.org, n.d.). (Justified or Not Justified)
- "The act was a questionable one. Many Northerners believed that Polk, a Southerner, was trying to gain land for the slaveholding South. Other Americans simply thought it was wrong to use war to take land from Mexico" (PBS.org, n.d.). (Justified or Not Justified)

Answer 1

Here’s the categorization of each quote from the passage:

1. Justified

   • "Polk... declared, '[Mexico] has invaded our territory and shed American blood upon American soil,' and sent the order for war to Congress on May 11" (PBS.org, n.d.).

2. Not Justified

   • "Polk started out by trying to buy the land. He sent an American diplomat, John Slidell, to Mexico City to offer $30 million for it. But the Mexican government refused to even meet with Slidell" (PBS.org, n.d.).
   • "... Ulysses S. Grant... would later call the war 'one of the most unjust ever waged by a stronger against a weaker nation. It was an instance of a republic following the bad example of European monarchies, in not considering justice in their desire to acquire additional territory'" (PBS.org, n.d.).
   • "The act was a questionable one. Many Northerners believed that Polk, a Southerner, was trying to gain land for the slaveholding South. Other Americans simply thought it was wrong to use war to take land from Mexico" (PBS.org, n.d.).

In summary:

• Justified: 1 quote
• Not Justified: 3 quotes