Shorter New York Times

Here's the NYT's headline and blurb today on Republicans, the SCOTUS nomination fight and the midterm election:

G.O.P. Weighs Political Price of Court Fight

By PETER BAKER and CARL HULSE 30 minutes ago
The retirement of Justice John Paul Stevens presents a test for Republicans as they weigh how much they want to wage anideological battle before midterm elections.

Or in other words: How batshit crazy do they wanna get?