The nationâs economy grew just 1.2 percent in the second quarter of the year, and 0.8 percent in the first three months of the year. Don't forget the national debt. It hit $19.5 trillion for the first time ever during the week just ending, a little more than seven months after it hit the $19 trillion mark.
U.S. proclaims neutrality in World War I, August 4, 1914. On this day in 1914, as World War I erupted across Europe, President Woodrow Wilson declared that the United States would remain âimpartial in thought as well as in action.â At the time, a vast majority of Americans approved of Wilsonâs policy of strict U.S. neutrality.
The main reason the United States entered World War I in 1917 was the unrestricted attacks German submarines were making on American ships and ships containing American passengers. Additionally, Americans were enraged at a telegram British intelligence intercepted in which Germany sought an alliance with Mexico.