Carlos Harrison: Time for That Ol' Pre-Convention Panic

GLEN ALLEN, VA - JULY 14: Conservative local residents protest prior to U.S. President Barack Obama's ''A Vision for Virginia's Middle Class'' campaign event July 14, 2012 at Walkerton Tavern in Glen Allen, Virginia. On the last day of his two-day campaign across Virginia, Obama continue to discuss his plan to restore middle class security and urged the Congress to act on extending tax cuts to middle class families. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images) (2012 Getty Images)

Ah, the summer slump. Time to eat your own.

It seems like only yesterday that the Democrats were screaming, "The sky is falling!" Actually, it was about a month ago. Key party leaders and strategists saw the presidency slipping from their hands.

No less than renowned Clinton strategist James Carville was one of the first to issue a scathing alert.

"My message is simple: WTFU. Translated -- wake the you-know-what up, there is an earthquake," Carville wrote. "Democratic fundraisers, activists, supporters, and even politicians alike have somehow collectively lapsed into the sentiment that the president is going to be reelected and that we have a good shot to take the House back while holding the Senate.

"I ask: What are you smoking? What are you drinking? What are you snorting or just what in the hell are you thinking?"