Question

As World War I was unfolding in Europe, why did President Wilson insist that America stay neutral?

Answer 1

I believe the answer is the first one, mainly because he did not wish to have the war come onto American soil.

Answer 2

The correct answer is 1) He believed the war overseas had nothing to do with the United States.

Woodrow Wilson adhered to the Monroe Doctrine, which stated that the Americas should remain free from any European intervention and, at the same time, the United States would not participate in any European conflict or European political issue. Thus, at the beginning of the conflict, Woodrow Wilson as many Americans felt that the war was far away and had no connection to the United States. In addition, the large American-German, American-Scandinavian, and American-Irish populations demanded neutrality, since they would never accept to support the British side. It remained that way until 1917 when the Germans attacked the British ship RMS Lusitania, where a great number of American civilian passengers died. This event pushed President Woodrow Wilson to declare war on Germany.