Photos of the wreck showed an internal blast hole.”

The USS Maine was NOT sunk by a mine. That theory has no credibility.

I’m enjoying reading your work. Regarding Gustavo’s comment and your request for more info, here’s a page I found with an opinion supporting Gustavo’s (I’m not speaking for its veracity; merely pointing it out):

http://www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq71-1.htm
[...]
Technical experts at the time of both investigations disagreed with the findings, believing that spontaneous combustion of coal in the bunker adjacent to the reserve six-inch magazine was the most likely cause of the explosion on board the ship. In 1976, Admiral Hyman G. Rickover published his book, How the Battleship Maine Was Destroyed. The admiral became interested in the disaster and wondered if the application of modern scientific knowledge could determine the cause. He called on two experts on explosions and their effects on ship hulls. Using documentation gathered from the two official inquiries, as well as information on the construction and ammunition of Maine, the experts concluded that the damage caused to the ship was inconsistent with the external explosion of a mine. The most likely cause, they speculated, was spontaneous combustion of coal in the bunker next to the magazine.
[...]

The one comforting thought I have in all this and our present circumstances is, that “Murphy’s Law” applies equally to everyone. Friend and foe alike.
Which may explain why the administration looks more like a Chinese fire drill than a thoughtful and dignified ship of state.

I imagine what it would be like if “W” set a plan to invade a candy store.
“W” yells “charge”, Cheney yells “every man for himself”, they charge in and find themelves sharing the shop with the “Bull” that we all remember from the china shop.