Postwar US military global reach exceeded that of any prior empire

Evidence

The unprecedented profusion of U.S. bases that emerged from World War II, however, represented a quantitative and qualitative shift in the nature of American power, transforming the country’s relationship with the rest of the world. By war’s end, the size, geographic reach, and total number of U.S. bases had expanded dramatically. Never before had so many U.S. troops been permanently stationed overseas. Never before had U.S. leaders thought about national defense as requiring the permanent deployment of military force so far from U.S. borders. After World War II, the United States commanded an unparalleled global military presence, unmatched by any prior people, nation, or empire in history. — David Vine, Base Nation_ How U.S. Military Bases…, 54

Categorization

• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — David Vine, Base Nation_ How U.S. Military Bases…, 54