Steele is done. Bring on Gillespie.

This news just broke on Politico:

Republican National Committee political director Gentry Collins resigned from his post Tuesday morning with a stinging indictment of Chairman Michael Steele’s two-year tenure at the committee.

In a four-page letter to Steele and the RNC’s executive committee obtained by POLITICO, Collins lays out inside details, previously only whispered, about the disorganization that plagues the party. He asserts that the RNC’s financial shortcomings limited GOP gains this year and reveals that the committee is deeply in debt entering the 2012 presidential election cycle.

Go on and click the above link to read all the gruesome details.

I hate to tell you all "I told you so", but as I wrote back in April...

Michael Steele is done.

He may remain as Chairman through the next year, but any hopes for an effective chairmanship of the RNC have vanished. He's bloodied and bleeding. And there's no reason to think anything short of an overwhelmingly dominating month of fundraising in April can begin to save him.

Ok, he sucked. So what do we do now?

Well, fortunately we have a chance to install another chairman in the upcoming RNC meeting.

Now we all knew Steele's chances at getting re-elected RNC chair have been somewhere between slim to none for awhile. But after a high profile staffer publicly details mismanagement of this magnitude, it's time to put the nail in Steele's coffin. He's done as Chairman.

So far, only former Michigan GOP Chairman Saul Anuzis has entered his name into consideration as a candidate. He's very competent, but has never seemed to spin up that much buzz.

My hope is Ed Gillespie, a former Chairman, will decide to give things another go.

Once again, as I wrote back in April...

Gillespie's skillful leadership of the RNC during the 2004 Presidential led to fantastic fundraising numbers and an unparalleled ground game.

[...]

Now some may call for a higher profile leader to assume the chairmanship, but the last thing the RNC needs right now is another big personality. Selecting a Chairman isn't a choice for best spokesman. While occasionally appearing in front of the media is an obvious part of the job, it isn't the priority. Instead the job should be held by the best strategist, best organizer, and best fundraiser, all in one package. Instead of a big personality we need the strong, unassuming winner that inspires confidence in both the volunteers that win races and the donors that fund them.

At the end of the day, it's not just a good choice for the RNC, but also a good choice for Gillespie. Sure, his reputation is already stellar. And he already helped save our butts this year by organizing American Crossroads with Karl Rove. But to lead the RNC back from the brink and win the White House in '12 would place him at a 'Haley Barbour in 1994' level of stardom within the GOP.

Let's keep our fingers crossed.