House Democrats went to some lengths over the last several months to avoid sending this message: “Elect us and we’ll have a bitter, internecine leadership battle.” But now they’ve been elected, and they’re about to have a bitter, internecine leadership battle. Not over Speaker Pelosi, but over the position of Majority Leader. A Steny Hoyer-John Murtha battle will expose the deep disagreements in the party, especially on Iraq, that Democrats managed to keep away from center stage during the campaign. In other words: Freed from the responsibilities of the majority, in coming weeks Republicans will have a leadership battle as part of a needed self-examination in the wake of a big defeat. Democrats will have a leadership battle because they will be in power and don’t know what to do.