After news leaked Wednesday that some Republicans had nudged President Obama in the direction of Merrick Garland as his pick for the Supreme Court, Republican disarray kicked in. These Republicans hinted that they'd consider Garland in the lame duck session after the election if Hillary Clinton wins the presidency.
Immediately after President Obama's announcement, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) piped up that he would "probably be open to resolving this in a lame duck." Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) added that the "only position I've had is 'Hey, I'm concerned about the direction of the court,' and so if we come to a point where we've lost the election, and we can get a centrist like Garland in there as opposed to someone like Hillary Clinton might appoint then I'd go for it." That put a lot of senators on the spot.
Other senators are clearly confused with what they're supposed to be doing here:
Republicans running for re-election disagree on how to respond. Kirk says he’s willing to consider Garland. Rob Portman of Ohio and Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire are open to meeting with Garland but back McConnell on taking no action. Pat Toomey supports McConnell’s position, as does Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, who sent a fundraising e-mail to his supporters touting the obstruction.
Several other Republicans told reporters they would agree to the courtesy calls, including Susan Collins of Maine and Jeff Flake of Arizona, which could make it tougher for other Republicans to avoid a meeting.
Please donate $3 today to help turn the Senate blue. The future of the Supreme Court depends on it.
Sen. John Cornyn, McConnell's deputy, is trying to whip them back into line, saying that it is "completely unacceptable" for the Republicans to even consider the idea of a lame duck confirmation because it undermines the "principle" McConnell has laid out of letting the voters decide. Maybe Sen. Al Franken's ribbing got to him. "It appears to be getting less and less about principle," Franken pointed out on MSNBC. "It's gone from—even under their reasoning—from 'Let the people decide' ... to 'Let the people decide unless they decide on Hillary Clinton.'"
The lame-duck ploy is bullshit all around, and Harry Reid, for one won't go along with it: "I don't think we should cut any slack to anybody by saying, 'Let's wait till the lame duck to do it.' I don't agree with that. I think we should do it now. It's unfair to have this man treated differently than anybody else."
It's confirmation hearings and a vote now, before Labor Day, or nothing.