Michael Moore has a new plan for Democrats to follow if they want to defeat President Trump in 2020: run “beloved” Americans like actor Tom Hanks.
The director of the upcoming documentary “Fahrenheit 11/9” recently promoted the project by calling Mr. Trump the “last” president, but a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter offers an alternative future. Mr. Moore sees electoral victory for Democrats if the voice of “Woody” in Disney’s “Toy Story” films turns political.
“As things stand right now, everybody should operate as if it’s a two-term Trump,” Mr. Moore told THR for an interview published Wednesday. “We need beloved figures running. Say what you want about Trump, but tens of millions watched his show. We need Tom Hanks, Oprah, Michelle Obama. Who would not vote for Michelle Obama?”
The director added that his inability to warn Americans in 2016 of Mr. Trump’s persuasion skills has bothered him.
“I just felt, ’What is wrong with me that I could not communicate to people that he was going to win these three or four states and that we had to get out en masse?’ It really bothered me,” he said.
Mr. Moore is convinced that America will soon adopt a new form of fascism, which will rely on a population primed for tyranny by marketing techniques.
“[My theory] comes from a book, ’Friendly Fascism,’ by a philosopher named Bertram Gross,” he told THR. “He talks about how the fascism of the 21st century would not be like the fascism of the 20th century. It would not come with concentration camps and swastikas, but with a TV show and a smiley face. The fascists of the 21st century will convince the people to go against their own interests by using television and branding. I don’t think we should be afraid to call this out for what it is.”
“Fahrenheit 9/11” opens nationwide on Sept. 21.
• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
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