 The Second Civil War looks at the effects of television sensationalism on the political scene. The main characters work for a CNN-like cable news station called News Net who try to get big ratings by exploiting the three T s: tits, tots, and tears. When a group of Pakistani orphans are denied entrance to the state of Idaho by a Governor (Beau Bridges) who wishes to exploit anti-immigration feelings for political advantage, even though he covertly has a Mexican mistress who is a News Net reporter. News Net sees a potential rating bonanza. Meanwhile, the President s political adviser (James Coburn) wants the President (Phil Hartman) to act like Eisenhower and insist on the orphans admittance. The cults of victimization and sensationalism which the news media have cannily exploited now result in the country splitting apart along racial lines as various groups throw their support behind either the President or the Governor, leading to the U.S.  second civil war, as the political adviser suggests that madness is more popular than the appearance of weakness on the part of the President.