Analysis Of The Film Wag The Dog

Wag the Dog displays the encounter of circumstances: an upcoming election, an incumbent candidate that is on a diplomatic trip on China while a sex scandal is just in; the job of his advisers: prevent his defeat. What to do when reelection is in danger? Invent a war for long enough to secure the incumbent’s reelection. The films fit perfectly with the concept of how domestic and international politics are both a struggle for power, just under different conditions. In the film, the US is now the hegemon of the world, and to be its president means that he (in this case) is the most powerful man in the world. Nevertheless, power could be a double-edged sword, if it is not handled correctly it could destroy you. The president of the US uses his
“Political life almost always operates through the medium of coercion” , and this is perfectly applied by both men to justify an eventual American reaction to Albanian fundamentalist terrorists on the Canadian border. The logic followed here is simple: they will attack Americans, they must be crushed immediately. To be clear, Albanians did not us coercive means towards Americans, the last ones used them against themselves. The second scene comes after the supposed end of the war. Motts needs a new idea, something that can again deviate the attention from the presidential sex scandal. What comes into his mind? An old shoe. The government once again justifies its actions citing security issues, liberty but now they have another objective: bring an abandoned soldier back home, Old Shoe was left behind. “Legitimate power, which can invoke a moral or legal justification for its exercise, is likely to be more effective than equivalent illegitimate power, which cannot be justified.” The justification for American actions is simple, a soldier is captive in Albania and he must be brought back. Does anybody try even to discuss the legitimacy of the attack? The answer is obviously not, the life of Old Shoe is now the most important foreign issue for the