The federal government’s decision to lay a subpoena on Michael Moore [1] provides a psychological insight (not a new insight) into the Bush Administration. The suboena probably has something to do with Moore’s visit to Cuba.
American law doesn’t prohibit Americans from visiting Cuba, [2] but it does prohibit American citizens spending their own money in Cuba. As I understand the law does allow certain non-profit organizations to take your money before you land in Cuba and they can spend money to feed and house you. So, perhaps, Bush is trying to nail Moore on this law. Or maybe it’s something else. We just don’t know yet. It is interesting that numerous Americans visit Cuba every year without a subpoena (just Google “Cuba” and “vacation,” yet Moore gets nailed when he goes to Havana.
The “why” is obvious. Michael Moore has driven a harpoon through a gaggle of corrupt politicians with [3]Sicko. [3] And we do know that Bush & Co. are vengeful, small-minded megalomaniacal and fascist control freaks.
The question on my mind is how many insurance company executives can the federal prosecutors possibly finagle onto a jury? I ask this because the prosetor will desperately need them to convict Moore of anything. But there just aren’t enough of those high-salaried executives out there to outnumber the millions of common citizens who know from personal experience that Moore is largely speaking truth when he tells us that the American health care system is inefficient, incredibly expensive, exclusionary, and often corrupt. Oh, and here’s another thing. Many of the competent federal prosecutors have been fired anyway–because they were competent. So who’s going to try this federal case against Michael Moore?
And what will result from this subpeona, no matter what it is really about? It will make Michael Moore into a victim/hero. It will be a world-class promotion for people to go see Sicko. The prosecution of Michael Moore will go nowhere. What is accomplished by this new subpoena is that Americans have been reminded of what a petty-minded vindictive man sits in the Oval Office. We saw this same vindictiveness before, when the Administration outed Valerie Plame.
Moore dared to embarrass the Republicans (and many Democrats) with Sicko. He did his work in a way that is resonating across American. Millions of Americans are now asking why we can’t afford to guarantee every American citizen a decent level of medical care. In Sicko, the scene with six- and seven-figure healthcare campaign contributions superimposed over many of our most powerful elected officials drew gasps and derision at the theater I attended. That’s political blood in the water and the citizens are moving in.
Here’s another thing that Moore did to embarrass Bush: By going into Cuba and showing (by walking down the street and being treated kindly by the people, including the doctors) Moore exploded the myth that Cuba is a hideous place, simply because it remains “Communist.” If anything, Moore’s scenes from Cuba made me want to visit Cuba for an extended stay.
In sum, Bush allowed his reptilian emotions take over when he gave the OK to send out that subpoena (if you don’t think the decision to send it wasn’t cleared on high, think again). The bottom line is that Bush is going to pay for this one. Almost no one CARES about technical laws regarding visiting or spending money in Cuba. This is Michael Moore’s dream to get attacked by the federal government. It was Osama Bin Laden’s dream to successfully bait Bush enough to cause Bush to expand the war beyond Afghanistan.
Being easily baited is not the mark of a strong leader.
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