In 1899, U.S Secretary of State John Hay proposed a major initiative called the Open Door policy. It stated a
a. desire to increase Latin American trade with the US.
b. desire to promote more open trade with Mexico after the annexation of Texas and the Mexican-American War.
c. desire to overthrow the Spanish government in Cuba and in the Philippines.
d. desire to open ports in China to American businesses competing with other nation in order to create a sphere of influence for everyone involved.

Question

In 1899, U.S Secretary of State John Hay proposed a major initiative called the Open Door policy. It stated a 
a. desire to increase Latin American trade with the US.
b. desire to promote more open trade with Mexico after the annexation of Texas and the Mexican-American War.
c. desire to overthrow the Spanish government in Cuba and in the Philippines.
d. desire to open ports in China to American businesses competing with other nation in order to create a sphere of influence for everyone involved.

wwhitlock · Answer

The stuff with Mexico was 1840s so that's the obvious throw out.
The Spanish American war was about that time. But a Secretary of State policy initiative isn't likely designed to overthrow a government.
So you need to figure out from your text if it's Latin America or China that the US wants to trade with.
You might consider that answer A mentions just the US trade and D refers to others as well. Which would seem to propose an "Open Door" for trade?