This Senate Republican doesn't seem to be embracing a Supreme Court blockade with much enthusiasm.
Republican Sen. Jerry Moran of Kansas showed some uneasiness with GOP leadership's decision to blockade President Obama's Supreme Court nomination, telling the National Law Journal that the "decision has already been made" to not give the nominee a hearing or even a meeting.
"If the president nominates somebody, I'll consider them by my constitutional responsibilities, but it's my understanding there will be no hearings, there will be no meetings," he said Monday. "So I think the likelihood of [hearings] happening is nil."
Translated: "Hey, man, it wasn't my idea, you know? I'm just going along with what they tell me to do." Moran is up for re-election this year, but his race isn't on anyone's radar as a contest. If a rock-solid incumbent is that ambivalent about Mitch McConnell's blockade, how must all the vulnerable incumbents feel?
Right now, while we're still in primary season for many of these Republican seats, they're more or less united in obstruction. Once in the throes of a general election—when it will be too late to actually start the confirmation process—you can expect to see them slinking away from leadership on this.
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