There are two possible answers why the “best grass-roots campaign in modern American political history” failed to deliver victory. First, Team Obama’s vaunted get-out-the-vote effort was simply a facade. That’s not likely, since Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, the Democratic candidate, did receive 158,482 more votes than he did in losing to Mr. Walker in 2010. …

Given the intense focus on the ground game by the Walker campaign, the Republican Governors Association, and Republican National Chairman Reince Priebus (who was Badger State GOP chairman before winning his current post), that’s probably a big reason Mr. Walker won with 205,509 more votes than he received 18 months ago.

Before Tuesday’s vote in Wisconsin there was already evidence that Democrats nationally didn’t have quite the ground game they brag about. Witness the fact that they are so far losing the voter-registration war in the eight battleground or “swing” states (as recognized by the media and the two campaigns) that enroll voters by party.