From the first post-election Morning Jolt . . .

Indeed, Tuesday Was a Stinging Rebuke to the White House Deputy Chief of Staff
Politico serves up the post-election palace intrigue: “Some current and former aides think a major part of [Obama’s] problem is the way the White House actually functions. And speaking on condition of anonymity, they told POLITICO that they hoped Tuesday night’s humbling losses would persuade Obama to pursue a much more sweeping fix than just the ‘natural’ postelection churn of personnel his administration has insisted will take place. Many of those changes are already being seriously considered; among them: replacing Political Director Patrick Gaspard with a former top aide to Rahm Emanuel; replacing deputy chief of staff Jim Messina — who is expected to move to Obama’s 2012 campaign — with Legislative Affairs Director Phil Schiliro; and possibly giving White House energy czar Carol Browner expanded policy responsibilities.But if Obama’s critics are focusing on his agenda and messaging, many on his team are urging him to address what they see as a major organizational flaw: an amorphous, ill-defined chain of command in the West Wing that concentrates too much power in too few hands, hampering efficiency, accountability and communication. ‘If there’s still only five, 10 people making decisions, then we haven’t learned our lesson from Tuesday,’ said one aide, who believes the problem starts with Obama’s insistence on giving his senior advisers, Valerie Jarrett and David Axelrod, broadly sketched responsibilities.”
Er, Mr. President, I’m not so sure that Tuesday’s results were a stinging rebuke of your staff. Half of them seem to have departed in the past two months anyway. You’re close, but look a little closer to home. No, not your secretary. Closer. Closer. See that guy in the mirror? The one you keep looking at while I’m trying to talk to you? Yeah, him.
I write the above as parody, but it’s possible some version of this dialogue has occurred at the White House, or will soon. Politico continues, “Some of Obama’s allies fear he will take Tuesday’s result too much in stride. That perception was fueled by Axelrod, who told a gathering of Democrats earlier this week that he didn’t interpret Tuesday’s expected debacle as a rejection of the president. “I’m not sure [Obama] gets it yet,” said one person close to the president.”