American status, spending, and Senate ratification

Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes represented the administration, while Henry Cabot Lodge and Oscar Underwood brought the Senate majority and minority leadership into the negotiations. Elihu Root supplied a public rationale centred on peace and disarmament. The United States sought recognition of parity with Britain while avoiding the cost of an unchecked naval contest, particularly where Japanese construction could prompt further American building. Including both Senate leaders connected the international negotiations to the domestic approval process. Hughes could present the government's case with the people needed to carry the result through the Senate already involved.