Parallels between Hitler's Bunker and The John McCain War-room

This may sound a little familiar to anyone who has read an American newspaper in the last month:

"Hitler reviewed the war room maps and moved troops [voters] that didn't exist. And his Generals [Robert Mosbacher, Frederic V. Malek, Jill Hazelbaker,Steve Schmidt, Rick Davis, Bill McInturff, et al] knew that the cause was lost but they didn't have the courage to say so.

"German soldiers [that is, Congress and Governors trying to run as Republicans] , including members of the Hitler's youth, were sacrificed to buy just little more time for a regime that controlled a few blocks of Berlin at best. "

"Eva Braun [a/k/a Cindy McCain] was depicted as the lady in waiting as she entertained the inner circle. Beneath the surface of this apparently fun loving woman was a dedicated Nazis who wanted to die with her Fuhrer. She had been the loyal girl friend, sitting in the background and only at the end did she receive her Fuhrer's hand in marriage."

"Propaganda Minister Joel Goebel [a/k/a Senator "Crazy" Joe Lieberman] and his wife, Magda, couldn't imagine a world without Hitler and his National Socialism ideology. They don't even want their own children to be part of just a world, so they kill their own children before ending their own life. There was one surreal scene where Himmler asked an aide whether he should give Eisenhower the Nazis salute or shake his hand as he negotiated Germany surrender. "

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All This Is That reheated: McCain's Dirty Secret--> Holy S**t! The October surprise? It Depends®

Reprinted from the Sept. 19th, 2008 All This Is That

By Pablo Fanque,
All This Is That National Affairs editor
Washington, D.C. 9-18-2008 12:15 AM EDT

No one quite expected this October surprise, if it comes to that. All This Is That received a tip over the weekend from a G.O.P. insider that John McCain is incontinent and wears adult diapers around the clock.

I jumped onto the story Sunday, after Jack Brummet called from the All This Is That offices. The first call I made was to sources in the Democratic Party. Interestingly, they wouldn't touch the story. The first two people I called told me to drop it. "Pablo, this story is going nowhere. This is just some crap a blogger cooked up in San Francisco."

My next call was to a Democrat I knew would never lie. She may not tell me the truth, but she would never lie about the facts. "Look, just drop it," she said. "We can't even come within 50 miles of this story. Yeah. I've heard some stuff. But there is no way we're going to touch this story. We have nothing to gain and everything to lose. If it comes out, fine. But no way is it coming out of here."

"How so?," I asked. "Look, Pablo. . .the second this story comes out, the McCain campaign will tie it to the P.O.W. years. This malady, this incontinence, will be attributed to his years in the prison camp. It will become a net positive—another hero's scars—and we will be skewered for playing the politics of personal destruction. And the McCain campaign will milk the P.O.W. angle for another month. I did hear some Dem P.A.C. has been working this, and they have photographic evidence, and someone willing to talk."

I next called a Republican friend who works for the R.N.C. "How high are you, Pablo? The Democrats are putting their heads in the sand on this one. They'll bide their time in hopes the story emerges elsewhere. They're way more spooked than we are on this one." "But why has nothing been mentioned in the press? Or the blogs and websites, even?" I asked. "You thought the John Edwards story was bottled up? No one wants to make the first move! Yuk."

The story slowly percolates, and it may be only a matter of time before it hits the mainstream media. There are rumors at least one tabloid has enough evidence—flimsy and otherwise—to break the story in the next week.

[editor's note: The story never broke, at least as of three days before the November 4th election. Was there not enough evidence, or did the Democrats show mercy by not throwing John McCain under the brown bus? We may never know. All This Is That Editors]
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Who do you love? A comparison of John McCain hugs with President Bush and Governor Palin.

No daylight between 'em. A hearty embrace, where Senator McCain even leans his head on The President's shoulder.



Best Friends Forever? Hardly. A most awkward embrace between the Senator and the Governor, who have now almost erupted into open warfare.
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Must see video: Mashup of Downfall with the McCain-Palin campaign

The New York Times had a great article on Sunday about people using footage from the German film Downfall to create all sorts of mashups and confabulations. . .

This YouTube video mashes up the doomed McPalin team with our long-vanquished enemy, Der Fuhrer. The writing is strong, and funny. . .


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Barack Obama, socialist-communist-stalinist?

The far right opposition has attempted to tar Barack Obama with a wide range of labels now. Left-wing, terrorist, America-hater, revolutionary, Muslim, radical, Arab, rookie, opportunist, and in the last couple of weeks, socialist. And in the desperate last 12 days to the election, some folks on the deranged right are using the word "communist." The communist accusation has recently gone mainstream, after earlier being largely confined to far right wacko blogs and web sites. The G.I.S. on Obama+Communist turns up 3,700,000 hits (a few of which direct to All This Is That).

Communist? You have to wonder what 1950's bomb shelter these morons have crawled out from. Now, blinking into the daylight after all these years, the best they can do is lob communist? I heard Mark Levin today go so far as to call him part of that communist sub-specialty--Stalinist!

Largely ignored this last week or so is the comprehensive--and damning--Rolling Stone article on John McCain's character, "Make Believe Maverick." I highly recommend you read this article if you are considering voting for John McCain. And if you're not voting for McCain, it's still worth a read, if only to confirm your inner wisdom and superior judgment of character!

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Don't pop the cork yet — with two weeks to go Obama himself admits anything can happen.

click to enlarge


By Pablo Fanque
All This Is That National Affairs Editor

Some of my friends say I am too pessimistic about the Democrat chances of regaining the White House. I think I've been realistic. Senator Obama agreed and warned supporters that the election is not over yet!:

“Don’t underestimate our ability to screw it up,” said Barack Obama just last week.

1) The polls now show Barack Obama solidly in the lead, ranging from 14 points to 2 or 3, with a sweet spot somewhere in the middle, about 7 points in Obama's favor.

But: we have to remember that Hubert Horatio Humphrey was also well ahead weeks before the election. Harry Truman was at least 7 points behind Dewey until that election night surprise.
2) Obama is already speculating about his cabinet. including names like John Kerry, Chuck Hagel, a republican who may become the next defense secretary. Surely his foreign policy advisor Susan Rice will have a slot somewhere in the administration. Former NATO general Jim Jones may be on the list, and Republican Richard Lugar as well.

But: Obama has to tread a fine line here. How many Senators does he, or do we, really want in the cabinet? John Kerry, while loyal and capable, surely doesn't play well to the theme of change. And change will be important coming out of the gate January 21st. Obama will undoubtedly name at least a couple of Republicans to top posts.

George W. Bush brought in a handful of old veterans to his administration, and it did not work out well. Cheney, Rumsfeld, and Colin Powell were the "experienced" ones who would help the green President Bush.

3) Colin Powell finally came out today and said in public what many people already knew. He is endorsing Obama. He will no doubt remain a top advisor to Obama, but will probably not take a post in the administration. Iraq is still too much in the forefront, and his role in that is still in everyone's memory. This morning's endorsement by Powell, who was often mentioned as a possible VP candidate for McCain, feels like one of the last nails on the coffin, whether he is part of the Obama administration or not (and in any case he will be an important advisor, as he has been in the campaign).

But: There is Joe the Plumber Wurzelbacher out there making a lot of noise and being trumpeted by Sarah Palin. Actually, I think we all know Joe the Plumber is just a blip on the screen of the rapidly eroding, sometimes deranged "base."

4) Obama is on the offensive now, storming into, and doing well in, longstanding Republican strongholds like Virginia and scaring the beejesus out of the G.O.P.

But: he may not pick up many traditional stronghold states like Florida and Ohio. Fortunately, he may not need them because he's strong in the blue states and making inroads into several red states. The possibility still remains that this election will be an electoral college pile-on.

5) The economy looms over nearly every decision and every action in these last few weeks. Obama has a strong flank of economic advisors, including people like Warren Buffet and Paul Volcker. He has proffered a coherent economic plan and seriously knocked Senator McCain off whatever game he still had left.

But: Paul Volcker is 81, and Buffet is not a young man either. Buffet also owns chunks of several financial institutions now. It doesn't seem likely wither of them will be in an Obama cabinet. . .but there are plenty of highly qualified people waiting in the wings.

Obama will clearly come out of the gate strong on the economy. I think we know where he will get his advice. It's not so clear who the front men and women will be. McCain is making no headway on the economy, and has, in fact, lost support following the recent economic meltdown.

**************************************

It's too early to celebrate or be cocky. Democrats need to stay focused the next 15 days. Obama has a strong game going into the last two weeks. The Promised Land lies just around the next corner.

It's now up to the voters to actually get to the polls, mail in their ballots, harangue their neighbors, send money to the campaign, and then get ready to celebrate for the first time since 1996.

The celebration may become even sweeter before it's all over. Just last week, an editorial in The Wall Street Journal last week warned of the distinct possibility of a “liberal super-majority” in the Senate (e.g., 60%). The Dems could end up with a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate, basically ensuring they can pass whatever they want, and get at least two left of center candidates onto the Supreme Court.

There is one (former) Democrat who may end up out in the cold after the election: the dwarf from Connecticut, Senator "Crazy" Joe Lieberman. If the 60 person supermajority does not need to include his votes, Joe Lieberman may well find himself handing out towels in the Senate Cloakroom.
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A YouTube compilation of John McCain's fidgets, eye bulging, tongue flicking, grimacing, and eye rolling from last night's debate

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John McCain graphically demonstrates his energy policy

McCain demonstrates his energy policy

The night of the last Presidential tilt and the Obama talking points email

This morning, the Obama campaign's Press Secretary, Sean Smith, e-mailed a list of debate talking points to the media.

It sounds more like news than the partisan diatribe you might expect!:


-------- Original Message --------
Date: Wed, 15 Oct 2008 09:37:27 -0500
From: Sean Smith [s***mith@barackobama.com]
To: Sean Smith [s***mith@barackobama.com]

* This is John McCain's last chance to turn this race around and somehow convince the American people that his erratic response to this economic crisis doesn't disqualify him from being President.

* Just this weekend the weekend, John McCain vowed to "whip Obama's you-know-what" at the debate, and he's indicated that he'll be bringing up Bill Ayers to try to distract voters.

* So we know that Senator McCain will come ready to attack Barack Obama and bring his dishonorable campaign tactics to the debate stage.

Obama continues to lead on the economic crisis with a rescue plan for Main Street.

* Over the course of the campaign, Barack Obama has laid out a set of policies that will grow our middle class and strengthen our economy.

* But he knows we face an immediate economic emergency that requires urgent action - on top of the plans he's already laid out - to help workers and families and communities struggling right now.

* That's why Barack Obama is introducing a comprehensive four-part Rescue Plan for the Middle Class - to immediately to stabilize our financial system, provide relief to families and communities, and help struggling homeowners.

* This is a plan that can and should be implemented immediately.

* Obama has shown steady leadership during this crisis and offered concrete solutions to move the country forward - and his Rescue Plan for the Middle Class builds on the plans to strengthen the economy and rebuild the middle class that he's laid out over the course of this campaign.

* Already in this campaign, he's unveiled plans to give 95 percent of workers and their families a tax cut, eliminate income taxes for seniors making under $50,000, bring down the cost of health care for families and businesses; and create millions of new jobs by investing in the renewable energy sources.

* John McCain has been erratic and unsteady since this crisis began - staggering from position to position and trying to change the subject away from the economy by launching false character attacks. ---o0o---

Palin-McCain campaign wheeled into the I.C.U.

By Pablo Fanque
All This Is That National Affairs Editor

What a week for the John McCain-Sarah Palin Presidential juggernaut! Video clips of their rallies show crowds screaming “treason!” or “terrorist!” at the mention of Mr Obama's name, and at times even darker imprecations like “kill him!” and “off with his head!"

As we wrote earlier, McCain has been forced to appeal for calm, responding to boos from a crowd on Friday: “I have to tell you he is a decent person and a person that you do not have to be scared of as president.” He later snatched the microphone later from a woman who suggested Senator Obama was an Arab.

This past weekend, civil rights leader and congressman John Lewis said the atmosphere at Republican rallies was similar to those of George Wallace, the segregationist presidential candidate. “Senator McCain and Governor Palin are sowing the seeds of hatred and division.”

At a weekend campaign event in Iowa, McCain was forced to repudiate a pastor who introduced McCain saying that millions of foreigners were praying to “Hindu, Buddha, Allah — that his opponent wins”.

Most Republican insiders and even the rank and file openly admit the McCain-Palin campaign has been desperately adrift, flailing against the economic storms, farcically suspending the campaign to fix the economic problems facing the nation, and having to carry the increasingly heavy baggage of Governor Palin. An Alaskan legislative commission on Friday concluded she had "abused her powers as Alaska Governor by trying to orchestrate the sacking of a state trooper who was her former brother-in-law." Sarah Palin's rallies have generated ugly racial sound clips and both she and McCain appear unable to control their supporters.

In short, it's about time to break out the oxygen and put this campaign in the I.C.U.

Time to pull the draw sheet over the patient?—click to enlarge

Over the weekend, in between trying to seem like a decent person (and possibly rescue some good will for when he trudges back to the Senate in defeat) at his increasingly hate- and invective-filled rallies, John McCain huddled with advisors, struggling to formulate an economic plan that won't be laughed off the stage at this week's debates. We'll see the fruits of those discussions in just a couple of days.

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Video: John McCain booed for calling Barack Obama decent and attempting to reign in his rabid followers

John McCain was booed yesterday for calling Barack Obama a decent man (in fairness, the booing was mostly against Obama), asking for respect for him at one of his town hall meetings. One man said he was "scared of Obama" and McCain replied the was a decent man who "you should not be scared of."

A woman said she can't trust Obama and McCain shook his head yes. She went on to say "he's an Arab." McCain vigorously shook his head no and took the microphone away from her and began explaining no, "No, Ma'am, he's decent family man and citizen I just happen to have disagreements with..."

John McCain lit this fire and is now distressed to see the fire spread out of control. He needs to slap a muzzle on his lipsticked pit bull Sarah Palin. It was refreshing to see a distressed John McCain show a little bit of what he had when some of thought he might change America.

Reign in the hate, Senator McCain. You have 24 days to walk away from this election with your head held high. We all know something is wrong when even Karl Rove says you have crossed the line. . .


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One more dull debate, with McCain edging Obama?

By Pablo Fanque

All This Is That National Affairs Editor

The two candidates debated last night in Nashville, and predictably clashed on the economy, taxes, the economic bailout, and the wars in Iraq, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. We heard very little we hadn't heard before.

John McCain needed a bump from this debate to raise his standings and give him a shot in what appears to be an electoral college lock by Obama. He probably will not get that bump. He did however, mostly redeem himself from his earlier debate performance with a relaxed, folksy performance, "my friends." He was short on substance and never seriously went on the attack. Not completely unexpectedly, there were a couple of strange moments: when answering Tom Brokaw's question about who he would appoint Treasury Secretary, he answered "Not you Tom!" and at one point he vaguely gestured toward Barack Obama and called him "that one." McCain did not bring up any of the mud-slinging "character" issues his partner in crime, Sarah Palin has been hammering away at in rallies recently.

For his part, Obama provided more specifics, and consistently linked McCain with George W. Bush. In a dust-up on foreign policy, Obama hammered away at McCain's steadiness. "This is a guy who sang bomb, bomb, bomb Iran, who called for the annihilation of North Korea—that I don't think is an example of speaking softly." Obama, however, once again appeared stiff and detached. The man just doesn't seem to be able to loosen up on stage, and while he is a great orator, his skills in retail politics are lacking. He never quite connects in these debates the way he seems to when he is alone in the spotlight.

If the debate had a winner, it may have been John McCain. While Obama once again appeared Presidential, McCain was able to connect with the audience in a more folksy way, reminiscent of the old John McCain that people loved. Unfortunately for John McCain, the old John McCain rarely makes an appearance these days, ceding stage time to the George Bush-lapdog McCain.

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John McPenguin video

John McCain morphs into a penguin.

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The Great Debate, McCain v. Obama, Part II

Click the debaters to enlarge


To call it the great debate is to besmirch the memory of Lincoln and Douglas, particularly now that the level of mud-slinging has accelerated to epic proportions on both sides. But just like the train-wreck you see coming, you can't take your eyes off the track. Here's hoping Obama shows some real passion and that McCain comes completely unhinged (there's only about two screws left in those hinges, and they look pretty rusty). Whatever happens, tonight's dust-up in Nashville should prove interesting.

Will Obama come out warm fully locked-on to the voters, and ready to do battle (as opposed to a more staid parry and thrust)? Or will he play the cool detached professor again? Will John McCain come out as the folksy "maverick," or the deranged Captain Queeg? Will they stick close to their established personas and leave us scratching our heads at one more snooze-fest, or will one of them take a real shot at either the issues or their opponent?
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Obama to McCain: You were wrong! The best video moment of the first Presidential Debate

"You talk about the surge. The war started in 2003, and at the time when the war started, you said it was going to be quick and easy. You said we knew where the weapons of mass destruction were. You were wrong. You said that we were going to be greeted as liberators. You were wrong. You said that there was no history of violence between Shia and Sunni. And you were wrong. " Barack Obama to John McCain, September 26, 2008

"We've spent over $600 billion so far, soon to be $1 trillion. We have lost over 4,000 lives. We have seen 30,000 wounded, and most importantly, from a strategic national security perspective, al-Qaeda is resurgent, stronger now than at any time since 2001. We took our eye off the ball. " Barack Obama to John McCain, September 26, 2008
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Was it a tie? Obama and McCain survive to fight another day?

By Pablo Fanque
All This Is That National Affairs Editor

I hoped for more from the first Presidential Debate of the 2008 season. In the end, you'd have to call it a tie/dead heat/stalemate. The very fact it was a tie undoubtedly translates to a loss for McCain, who needed the win.

In this first, "foreign policy" debate it took over 30 minutes for the candidates--admittedly facing a national and world economic crisis--to actually get around to foreign policy issues. And when they did, Senator McCain failed to expose any real weakness in Senator Obama's grasp of foreign policy. McCain, now trailing in the tracking polls, needed a big win tonight. No cigar. McCain never seemed in control of his message; Obama never seemed to waver. McCain almost conceded the change issue to Obama. He never brought it up.

McCain accused Barack Obama of compiling "the most liberal voting record in the United States Senate" and accused him by my count seven times, in various forms, of being naive and clueless. For his part, Obama praised McCain too many times. And he let McCain's jabs stand when he should have counterpunched. He let McCain's comments on his 900 million in earmarks stand, when this was clearly one more case of inside baseball. McCain came off as an arrogant and cranky professor lecturing a clueless student. . .while Obama proved time and again his mastery of the facts of numerous and complex foreign policy issues. The new kid on the block relentlessly rattled off facts and figures on the devastating and costly war in Iraq. He didn't just say the war was wrong: he showed how the war was wrong, by proving we were fighting the wrong war.



Obama scored big points for accusing McCain of being wrong on Iraq, and for fighting the wrong war by ignoring the real issue of the growing presence of al Qaeda in Afghansitan and Pakistan. McCain did not rebut him.

Early in the debate, Obama refused to address an arcane point about the inner -workings of Senate committees because it was "inside baseball." However he left several of McCain's inside comments about earmarks stand, and didn't go after McCain on any of his own spending troubles when McCain tried to take the high road.

On the podium, they both looked fine (even McCain, who can look pretty spooky...he had an expert makeup job). It was mostly a tie, but McCain often came off as snarky, and was generally hunched over his podium in what came off--to me at least--as a hostile, closed off posture, while Obama was open and warm. He often turned and looked over at McCain, who refused to ever look directly at Obama.

Both candidates refused to take advantage of the nation's economic woes, and did not differ on much of substance, and, in fact, agreed that greed and deregulation that brought us to this lamentable state of affairs.

It was close to a stalemate...I'd give McCain a few more points for getting in unanswered jabs, and I'd give Obama points for showing grace an charm under fire. Obama absolutely looked Presidential, and I suspect that, even if you'd score this as a tie, Obama clearly showed he would be every bit--if not more--Presidential than John McCain. Following this debate, the populace now understands that Barack Obama could clearly hold his own with the likes of Putin, Chavez, or any foreign leader. This raises the stakes on the next debate. . .right through the roof!




Joe Biden made the rounds post-debate of numerous talk shows. Sarah Palin was, as is often the case, absent, under wraps, and silent. Their turn comes this upcoming week.
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The Palin bump is over; it's all downhill from here

"McCain is being viewed as running for Bush's Third Term. The Palinpalooza is basically over, despite the attempts of some to keep it going." - From Big Ticket Democrat/Talk Left
]




Another piece in Talk Left said: "Obama [is] regaining the momentum in the presidential race and leading John McCain. It's not just the economy. It's also McCain's opportunistic pick of Gov. Sarah Palin for Vice President. A majority of those polled (pdf)find her unqualified and 3/4 of them believe she was selected primarily to help McCain win. "




"More than half of registered voters do not think she is prepared for the job of Vice President, and a majority express concern about Palin being able to take over the presidency, if necessary. Even supporters of John McCain cite “inexperience” as what they like least about her. Palin’s unfavorable rating is also up eight points from last week."
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Oprah Winfrey refuses to have Sarah Palin on her show. Sarah: Give All This Is That a call!

That self-important battleaxe Oprah refuses to have Sarah Palin on her show. She HAS had any number of celebrities, felons, junkies, and liars on, but somehow the Republican VP candidate doesn't make the cut. Come on, Oprah! Aren't you a little bigger than that? Yeah, your man Obama is starting to sweat bullets. . .but you acting like this just plays into the hands of what the Republicans were saying all week. We've at least got to act bi-partisan!

Dear Governor Palin:

Consider yourself lucky to avoid The Oprah Show. We may disagree with you on just about everything, but we'd love to have you here for a chat.

Yours,

The Editors

All This Is That

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Sarah Palin Hits A Triple::::::The Outsider::::::::The Velvet Hammer::::::And she did it from memory, due to a broken Teleprompter

By Pablo Fanque

All This Is That National Affairs Editor

St. Paul, Minnesota 9-4-2008

Greeted by a tidal wave of applause (not quite at the Triumph of the Will level), Alaska Governor Sarah Palin stood in front of the Republican National Convention last night, and, lord knows how many millions of Americans at home (will they beat Obama's 35 million TV audience?), as a small-town outsider ready to join John McCain in "a tough fight in this election against confident opponents at a crucial hour for our country." She was met with thunderous applause.

Palin appeared immediately after Rudy "9/11" Giuliani softened up the crowd with a full throated and systematic condemnation of Obama and a warm (maybe even heartfelt), embrace of Governor Palin.

She appeared nervous at first, her voice maintaining a nervous edge for the first few minutes. And then, she took off. There were awkward moments in the speech, but almost all of them were immediately followed by crowd-pleasing zingers that brought the convention to its feet again and again.

Amazingly enough, her teleprompter quit working in the middle of the speech. She continued, from memory, to deliver her speech without the teleprompter. Republican websites have already compared this performance to one of Barack Obama's who, when his teleprompter malfunctioned during a recent speech, "was left stuttering before a crowd unable to advance his speech until the problem was resolved."

Palin tore into Obama and Biden, and she did it well. She did everything she needed to do and more. This all adds up to one gnarly dogfight between now and November 4th. I don't think there was a blunder, misstatement, or mistake Obama has made in the last two years that she didn't bring up, and mock. She proved she is no shrinking violet and went into the traditional Republican VP attack dog mode with ease and vigor.

"The American presidency is not supposed to be a journey of 'personal discovery.' This world of threats and dangers is not just a community, and it doesn't just need an organizer," Palin said.

Of course, this speech is one of the critical, but easiest, steps she must take in the next two months. She has the base hooked, now it's time to go after that other pesky 50% of the voters.

There is still that albatross hanging around their necks...The President. I may be wrong, but I don't believe she expended any oxygen talking about President George W. Bush, other than obliquely, to say they would go and clean up Washington.

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Photos: Republican Convention opens in Minnesota

click to enlarge

click to enlarge the opening cermonies

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