This post is simply for the purposes of fun hypothetical discussions.
Truth Out wrote a piece recently talking about why controversial documentary filmmaker Michael Moore should run for President of the United States. Now, I don’t know if this is some kind of random joke post, but it sounds like author is being pretty serious and he even makes multiple points as to not only why Moore should run, but how he could actually WIN. Yikes.
Obviously this is just crazy to think about. After Bowling for Columbine came out, Moore was the top dog in the world of documentaries, but it did not take long before he was attacking the world of politics with a vengeance. Some praised his strong stance and determination to get things changed in Washington, while others were turned off by his loud and aggressive tactics. And when many reports — such as this one — seemed to point out Moore’s apparent hypocritical words and actions as well as his sneaky methods of editing his films to create situations that didn’t actually take place, trust became a major issue.
Due to all of this chaos behind him, an actual bid for the presidency of the United States would very likely see him laughed out before most even knew campaigning had started.
In any case, this story got me to thinking: what IF Michael Moore did run for President? What if the points made below by the author of the above source actually played out and for some reason, America voted in the most outspoken filmmaker of all-time?
Here’s just a couple of the points made; you can read the whole crazy thing by clicking the link above.
Like few people with his political views, Michael Moore needs no introduction to the Democratic primary electorate. To most rank-and-file Democrats, the name Michael Moore stands for a set of progressive populist ideas: health care for all, workers’ rights, opposition to Wall Street’s stranglehold on Washington, closing down the wars of empire and bringing our troops home.
In many ways, the stage is set perfectly. There will not be a crowded field; if career advancement is your goal, you generally don’t run in a primary against a sitting president. When “the Democratic Party is in power” is the ideal time to mount a progressive Democratic challenge, because that’s when the inability of Washington Democrats in thrall to Wall Street to deliver on progressive promises is thrown into sharp relief.
Seriously — anyone can run for President and say “Health care for all, rich and poor! No taxes ever again! World peace for the rest of eternity!” That doesn’t mean Moore would step in, wave his hat, and all that he said would be done.
It’s no secret that I’m not a big fan of politics. I think they’re all tainted in one fashion or another, and there’s nothing anyone of us can really do about it, so I just sit back and hope things don’t crash and burn too hard.
I’m also someone who thinks it’s a bit naive for so many people actually think that Barack Obama or anyone else would have this country fixed after just one year — especially to this point where people like Michael Moore are a valid option to some people already. If you ask me — whether it’s Obama, McCain, that cartoony Eskimo lady, or Michael Moore here — none of them could possibly have everything that needs to be fixed in this country taken care of in one TERM, let alone one year.
That right there is about as political as I get, and this is one of the very rare times you’ll see politics on a site like this. I just couldn’t pass up an opportunity to look at someone’s argument for Moore as President and throw it to the wolves (that’s you guys) for evisceration. Ta-da!
Once again, this is obviously not going to happen (I hope) and this is strictly just for entertaining discussion purposes, but what do you guys think of this story’s proposition for Michael Moore to run for President?
Speak it!
