The Spanish American war<span> for the first time put the </span>U.S.<span> overtly into the imperial game and gave </span>us<span> our first overseas possessions. ... The possession of Puerto Rico and the Philippines certainly </span>did<span> not dramatically improve the </span>U.S. economy<span>. It may even in direct terms have come at some cost to or </span>economy<span>.</span>