Democrats picked off two of six Republican incumbents in the historic recall elections in Wisconsin today, but have apparently fallen one short of flipping control of the state senate. Disappointing, I suppose, but only if you ignore the enormity of the task and the impressive achievement that the two successful recalls represent. Voters sent a strong message to union-busting Gov. Scott Walker today... just not quite the earth-shattering message we had hoped for.

A third victory was tantalizingly close, until once again Waukesha County Clerk Kathy Nickolaus sat and sat on ballots, before miraculously producing a huge margin for the Republican. Needless to say, Wisconsin Democratic Party Chair Mike Tate has his suspicions:

"The race to determine control of the Wisconsin Senate has fallen in the hands of the Waukesha County clerk, who has already distinguished herself as incompetent, if not worse. She is once more tampering with the results of a consequential election and in the next hours we will determine our next course of action. For now, Wisconsin should know that a dark cloud hangs over these important results."

Come January, Walker himself will be eligible for a recall, and if today's results are any indication, it's gonna be close.