Leader today, chum tomorrow?

Is there a growing uneasiness among Washington Democrats who tire of having to defend a senate majority leader always on the ropes -- first Tom Daschle from South Dakota and now Harry Reid from Nevada?

Apparently so if Washington Post columnist Dana Milbank is on to something when he writes: "But after spending so much energy on Reid's reelection ... Democrats may conclude that it's better to have a leader from a safe state where parochial concerns won't interfere as much. Both of Reid's would-be replacements, New York's Chuck Schumer and Illinois' Dick Durbin, fit the bill."

Milbank also illustrates how Reid has helped himself during the health care "reform" debate to the detriment of other senators, Sen. Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas in particular.

"Take the case of the ill-fated "public option" in the health-care bill, Milbank writes. "Everybody, including Reid, knew the idea didn't have enough votes to clear the Senate. But Reid called a solo news conference and announced that he was including the proposal anyway. The reason was clear: The attempt would excite his Democratic base in Nevada, which would give him credit for trying even when the plan ultimately failed, as it did this week. But Reid seemed not to have considered, or cared about, the collateral damage: forcing moderate Democrats such as Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas to cast a procedural vote in favor of the public option that could prove ruinous to their own careers -- and to the party's majority."

What this means is if Reid can't start providing the leadership to improve the national polling data for Democrats, there will be blood in the water on that side of the aisle ... ... and guess who looks like chum.