Democrats are arguing among themselves about whether they will blow their presumably big chance in November by not having an adequate get-out-the-vote program in place. This goes back to the schism, which we've reported on before, between the DNC, led by Howard Dean, and the party's relatively sane Congressional leaders. The Washington Post reports on Democrats Scrambling to Organize Voter Turnout:

Top Democrats are increasingly concerned that they lack an effective plan to turn out voters this fall, creating tension among party leaders and prompting House Democrats to launch a fundraising effort aimed exclusively at mobilizing Democratic partisans.

At a meeting last week, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) criticized Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean for not spending enough party resources on get-out-the-vote efforts in the most competitive House and Senate races, according to congressional aides who were briefed on the exchange.

That's right. Dean is focused on trying to win Mississippi and Wyoming.

Pelosi -- echoing a complaint common among Democratic lawmakers and operatives -- has warned privately that Democrats are at risk of going into the November midterm elections with a voter-mobilization plan that is underfunded and inferior to the proven turnout machine [Ed.: "Machine!" Thank you Karl and Ken!] run by national Republicans.

It's hard to believe that such a momentous election could turn on organizational incompetence on the part of the Democrats, but, hey--we can always hope.

Posted by John at 10:10 PM  |    |