In 2010, the National Republican Senatorial Committee spent a great deal of time and energy portraying conservatives as the reason the GOP did not take back the Senate. They blamed Jim DeMint for Sharon Angle’s win, though he chose not to supporter her in the primary. They blamed Jim DeMint and Sarah Palin for Christine O’Donnell’s win, though they endorsed a week before the primary when she was already ahead by double digits. They blamed Jim DeMint and conservatives for Ken Buck in Colorado, though Buck won independents by 18% and suffered through a disastrous state Republican party mess to get there.

It’s worth remembering too that the NRSC spent money in Colorado attacking Ken Buck and then couldn’t help him across the finish line as the nominee because . . .well . . . they’d spent their independent expenditure budget attacking him. So they did the logical thing — they abandoned a bunch of potential rising stars and went all in with Carly Fiorina who, after having run a money losing bid for the Senate got to be co-chair something or other at the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

Yes, the NRSC is an expert on how to lose.

This year, the NRSC will have only itself to blame again, but this time really without any conservatives to pin the blame on. Tommy Thompson is flailing about in Wisconsin as the senile old grandfather with his various assorted women issues. The Florida nomination pick was pitiful. George Allen is performing as everyone outside the establishment expected he would in Virginia. Then there is Todd Akin in Missouri.

The contrast is staggering. Tommy Thompson in Wisconsin is getting NRSC dollars after campaigning to end the filibuster and Todd Akin? Nothing.

So offensive were his comments, supposedly, that the NRSC decided to avoid him like the plague.

On October 5, 2012, news broke that five companies in Missouri tied directed to Claire McCaskill received more than $1 million in stimulus funds. The NRSC sent out its morning reads of stories to focus on that day and never mentioned it. John Cornyn, head of the NRSC, has repeatedly said Missouri is off the table for the NRSC. The NRSC makes as much eye contact with Missouri as Barack Obama did with Mitt Romney in the first debate.

It’s true that Todd Akin has Joe Biden disease, but Todd Akin can still win. Claire McCaskill is not popular in Missouri. Polls remain close.

The NRSC was perfectly happy to throw conservatives under the bus in 2010. This time, it’ll be the NRSC’s suicide. Good riddance, I guess. But we’ll lose the Senate again because of the NRSC.

You can support Todd Akin here.