Yeah, the truth is great and all that, but the time for the post-mortem is after the election. Right now, if you're a so-called LEADER of the party you've got to get the base excited. That's your job.
You never see the dems shoot themselves in the foot this badly. Republicans, on the other hand, are expert at snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.
Look up Reagan's 11th commandment. That's what leadership is.