Full Sail Ahead for Senate Vote

Let's see if you can correctly answer this riddle: what do they call the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedies?

I know, there can be many possibilities, but the one exact answer to this head-scratcher awaits you at the end of this short analysis.

And speaking of head-scratchers, I probably would have lost the bet had you asked me this morning whether Senator Mitt Romney, a Trump rival, would have been the driving force to move the Senate forward with a vote on the replacement for liberal Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Romney's momentous declaration leaves Democrats with slim pickings and fewer hopes of blocking Senate confirmation of President Trump's third appointment to our nation's highest court, one that would give it a 6-3 conservative majority.

Republicans enjoy a 53-47 predominance in the Senate, meaning four Republicans would have to join Democrats in opposing a confirmation vote to block the nomination. So far, only Alaska's Lisa Murkowski and Maine's Susan Collins said the Senate should not consider a nominee this year, making Romney's breaking news even more historic, and I couldn't be more pumped.

And now, the answer to the above riddle is "politics."

Phil Paleologos is the host of The Phil Paleologos Show on 1420 WBSM New Bedford. He can be heard weekdays from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. Contact him at phil@wbsm.com and follow him on Twitter @PhilPaleologos. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.