Question

president polk’s message to congress (1846)
\the grievous wrong perpetrated by mexico upon our citizens throughout a long period of years remain undressed, and solemn claims treaties pledging her public faith for his redress have been disregarded... upon the pretext that texas, a nation as independent as herself, thought proper to unite its destinies with our own, she has affected to believe that we have severed her rightful territory, and in official proclamations and manifestos has repeatedly threatened to make war upon us for the purpose of reconquering texas. in the meantime, we have tried every effort at reconciliation.
the cup of forbearance had been exhausted even before the recent information from the frontier of the rio grande del norte. but now, after reintegrated menaces. mexico has passed the boundary of the us, has invaded our territory, and shed american blood upon american soil. she has proclaimed the hostilities have commenced, and that the two nations are now at war.\
butler, steven r. a documentary history of the mexican war. richardson, tx: descendants of mexican war veterans, 1995. print.
congressional resolution drafted by charles sumner (1847)

esolved, that the present war with mexico has its primary origin in the unconstitutional annexation to the united states of the foreign state of texas while the same was still at war with mexico; that it was unconstitutionally commenced by the order of the president, to general taylor, to take military possession of territory in dispute between the united states and mexico, and in the occupation of mexico; and that it is now waged ingloriously by a powerful nation against a weak neighbor
out of the following issues, on which factor are the authors above most likely to disagree in terms of its role as a cause of the war with mexico?
select one answer
a raw materials.

b the panic of 1837.

c military aggression.

d expansion of slavery.

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Explanation:

Polk’s message frames the war as a response to Mexico’s military aggression (crossing the Rio Grande, shedding American blood). Sumner’s resolution criticizes the war as unjust but does not mention raw materials, the Panic of 1837, or slavery as core disagreements. Military aggression is the explicit point of divergence: Polk claims Mexico initiated it, while Sumner implies U.S. provocation.

Answer:

C. Military aggression.