Well, how shocking is this??

In the wake of the Democratic National Committee’s surprisingly weak February fund raising, Democratic insiders are questioning the unusual arrangement that has Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine serving as a part-time chairman until his term as governor ends next January.

The disappointing results come despite conditions that are ripe for a Democratic Party fund raising windfall: The party faithful are still buzzing from Barack Obama’s November presidential victory, Democrats have large congressional majorities and Obama is riding high in the polls despite a bleak economic picture. On top of that, the party is now in possession of the vaunted 13-million-address e-mail list he used to shatter fundraising records in 2008.

Yet fundraising numbers reported Friday show that in February, Kaine’s first full month as chairman, the Republican National Committee – supposedly plagued by GOP apathy and a chairman who got off to a rocky start, outraised the DNC $5.1 million to $3.3 million.

This is crazy. The Democratic Party should be riding high… they’ve got large majorities in the House and Senate, and are coming off a thrilling “historic” victory with Barack Obama as President. Yet somehow, the RNC managed to out-raise them. Considering the humiliating losses Republicans have taken the past few elections, and the flubs Michael Steele has made as RNC chairman, I don’t think anyone would have predicted these numbers.

It seems to be that Democrats are simply donating less than they were pre-election. There’s probably a multitude of reasons for this, and the number one reason is obviously the economy. Families are buckling down on finances, and giving that $100 to your political party yet again probably isn’t too thrilling an idea when you’re having trouble paying your bills. And Obama has yet to attend a DNC fundraiser as President. I’d also imagine that a lot of Democrats feel like their goals have been accomplished — they have a Democratic majority in the House and the Senate, plus a Democratic President, so why keep donating?

I think that the biggest problem the DNC is having, though, is Tim Kaine. He’s not a fiscally responsible governor, so why would he be a fiscally responsible chairman? Then there’s also the issue of his dual roles as both governor of Virginia and chairman of the DNC. It will take more than Obamamania to keep the checks coming in, and chairing the DNC is a full-time job. Yet they only have a part-time chairman.

All in all, this just also goes to show that perhaps it’s time we Republicans back off of Michael Steele. The RNC exists to raise money, and it did so well in February. No one will care about the stupid gaffes he made in his first few weeks as chairman if he continues to perform like this. Keep it up, Michael, and way to go!