Nothing is going to stand in the way of Mitch McConnell's last grand "fuck you" to President Obama—not even the prospect of Donald Trump picking the next Supreme Court justice.
WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is continuing his no-holds-barred blockade of Merrick Garland, President Barack Obama’s nominee to the Supreme Court, despite the risk that he may get a less palatable choice from presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump, a spokesman for McConnell confirmed Wednesday. […]
“While I’m glad to see Democrats concede that there won’t be a Democrat in the White House next year, Republicans continue to believe that the American people should have a voice in this decision and the next president should make the nomination,” said Don Stewart, a spokesman for McConnell. “Despite the White House coordinating with liberal groups and millions of dollars in special-interest ads, no Republican has moved from their principled position,” he added.
Well, that's one way of spinning Democrats' point that McConnell is effectively signing off on Trump shaping the Supreme Court. Or maybe he's still "increasingly optimistic" that Trump won't be the nominee. Just a few weeks ago, McConnell was pretty certain that voting at the RNC in July would go to a second ballot and Trump would be dumped. He's also told the mass of his vulnerable senator up for re-election this cycle that they can drop Trump "like a hot rock," and run totally localized campaigns. So at the moment, McConnell seems to be clinging to the twin life rafts of denial—Trump won't get the nomination—and irrational optimism—down-ballot Republicans can run away from him.
Alternatively, McConnell is solely looking out for number 1. Chances were already at least even that the Democrats would regain the majority this cycle, so he's got his eye on 2018 when the map is better for Republicans to take it back. Maximum obstruction now, he might be surmising, will cement his return to the leader position then. Or maybe he just hates President Obama so much he doesn't need any rational excuse to take this blockade to the bitter end.
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