The Party of Michael Moore

But when Moore returned with his next film in 2007, O’Reilly was still very much on the warpath.
In Sicko, Moore would not exactly depart from his didactic style, but—in highlighting an issue (the need for national health care) without backing a specific policy or politician—the work followed in the tradition of Bowling for Columbine far more than Fahrenheit. The mostly positive critical reaction saw a recent nemesis return, this time with a nod of the cap. Writing in Counterpunch, Ralph Nader, who after the 2004 election wrote a column there asking “Will the Real Michael Moore Ever Re-Emerge,” now viewed Sicko as Moore’s “best move yet.” Nader did express hope that Moore would go beyond his general endorsement of national health care to contribute his resources and influence to the widespread grassroots movement behind HR 676, John Conyers’s legislation calling for a single-payer system. In a memorable showdown with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, in which the activist filmmaker berated the host and his network for their coverage of the war, Moore would in fact express his support for the bill. (On Blitzer’s show, Moore would also speak favorably about the new Al Gore, and not rule out supporting Hillary Clinton.)