DNC Chief Reportedly Threw His Phone at Aide

The Democratic National Committee is being hit with a steady drumbeat of stories suggesting the party is in dire financial straits with the midterms looming. The latest comes from the New York Times, which reports that the DNC is so strapped for cash that it's making an unusual request of vendors: Please don't send bills until the midterms are over. The report follows one in Axios that the DNC recently held a meeting to discuss finances and required its leadership team to sign non-disclosure agreements beforehand. The contrast with the Republican National Committee is stark: The RNC has about $125 million on hand and no debt, while the DNC is in the red: It has $15 million on hand and about $18 million in debt.

Both stories suggest that DNC chief Ken Martin is feeling heavy pressure from donors and operatives, with the Times describing him as "increasingly isolated, gripped by the fear that he will lose his job and relying on a vanishingly small circle of people he trusts." The story adds that he threw his phone at a junior aide last month while chastising the person, which resulted in a complaint to human resources. Martin, for his part, has been going on the offensive by disputing the doomsday financial scenarios with essays like this one. But the Bulwark (under a story headlined "It's Gone from Bad to Worse to Perilous at the DNC") speaks to national committee members who describe the aforementioned essay as both "defensive and dishonest."