Monroe Doctrine Its Status

In 1895. President Cleveland in his message to Congress in regard to what has come to be known as the "Venezuela affair" said the Monroe Doctrine "has its place in the code of international law as certainly and as securely as if it were specifically mentioned." To test the accuracy of this statement we must determine as closely as possible what the Monroe Doctrine is and what is the correct meaning of the term "code of international law." Having settled our definitions the issue will be clearly defined and its discussion possibly profitable.