The Stakes of 2016 Just Got Much Higher

New York Times: “An already unpredictable election pitting grass-roots activists on the left and right, unenthusiastic or flabbergasted by their presidential choices, against party leaders is suddenly erupting into a rare battle royal for control of every branch of government: the White House, Congress and the Supreme Court. Mr. McConnell’s threat to block a confirmation could complicate the re-election chances of Republican senators in swing states.”

“For months, Mrs. Clinton had warned that the stakes were high in this election because of the Supreme Court seats the next president would most likely have to fill. But Justice Scalia’s death at a West Texas ranch on Saturday, and the instant fight over whether Mr. Obama should name his successor, turned an abstract stump-speech line into an urgent and overriding argument, as candidates in both parties hurried to respond to the seismic shift the vacancy created.”