William McKinley lacked the boldness and flamboyance of his successor as president, Theodore Roosevelt, and so he has largely occupied a place in Roosevelt’s historical shadow. Perhaps unfairly.

In a discussion of his new book President McKinley: Architect of the American Century, acclaimed historian Robert Merry portrays the 25th president as a consequential leader who oversaw America’s transformation into a global power. Before his assassination in 1901, McKinley settled decades of controversy by taking the country to a strict gold standard, ousted Spain from the Caribbean in the Spanish-American War, acquired Hawaii and the Philippines, developed the doctrine of “fair trade,” and forced an Open Door to China.

Merry, editor of The American Conservative, is a former political reporter for The Wall Street Journal and CEO of the Congressional Quarterly.