Allahpundit already hit this one once, but when even Jake Tapper has to lead an article with “Huh?”, it’s worth a second look.  It’s one thing to thank one’s supporters for all their hard work in a losing cause, and perhaps even to blow a little sunshine up their skirts when doing so.  It’s something else when trying to thank them for a big victory when it’s the opposition that won it:

In the recorded message, the president says, “Thank you for the tireless work, you guys organized the single largest midterm election effort in this history of our party…You turned ‘Yes We Can’ into ‘Yes We Did.’”

“You didn’t sit this one out even when all the pundits said it was hopeless and because of that we are stronger,” the president said.

Considering that President Obama himself called the election “a shellacking,” with Democrats losing control of the House of Representatives, six Senate seats, 20 state legislatures, one might be forgiven for wondering exactly he thinks his volunteers did – other than valiantly trying but failing to get enough voters to the polls.

Er, stronger?  They lost six seats in the Senate despite having a numerical advantage over the GOP in the 2010 cycle, and they lost at least 62 seats in the House — the worst midterm drubbing in 72 years.  Furthermore, while the DNC tried spinning it as an opportunity to build its contacts with voters, the voters made their estimation of those contacts plain, as ABC’s polling showed:

As ABC News Polling Director Gary Langer has pointed out, according to exit polls, 29 million Obama voters from 2008 didn’t show up to vote in the midterms.

“Thirteen percent of Obama voters defected to Republicans for Congress,” Langer noted.

Women – who won women voters by 13 points in 2008 — voted 49-48 percent for Democratic vs. Republican House candidate — the best for Republicans among women in national House vote in exit polls since 1982.”

Yes they can — alienate voters through arrogance and incompetence.  Trying to spin the midterms into victory is a little of both.

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