HEY, THE DOG MIGHT NOT PEE ON THE HYDRANT THIS TIME! REALLY!

I do enjoy the comedy stylings of Adam Nagourney:

Republicans Weigh Risks of a Supreme Court Battle

President Obama's nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court has put the Republican Party in a bind, as it weighs the cost of aggressively opposing Mr. Obama's attempt to put the first Hispanic on the high court at a time when the party has struggled with sharp setbacks in its effort to appeal to Hispanic voters.

The Republican Party has been embroiled in a public argument over whether to tend to the ideological interests of its conservative base or to expand its appeal to a wider variety of voters in order to regain its strength following the defeats of 2008....

Gosh, I really, really wonder how this is going to turn out. I'm not sure I can handle the nail-biting suspense.

Oh, please. We know the Republicans are going to oppose her aggressively; the only question was whether the Senate leadership would come out with guns blazing or pretend to be holding fire. We have our answer on that -- the RNC has "accidentally" leaked mild-seeming talking points to the press, and tough talk is being limited to members of interest groups and Republicans who aren't currently in office....

For now.

Here's what happens next: One day -- and it will be one day -- the entire GOP will pivot as one and focus on one or a small handful of anti-Sotomayor talking points. Their message discipline will be perfect and they won't stop until the zone is flooded like New Orleans in August '05. Outside groups and media blatherers may do so in a giddy way, but current GOP elected officials will pretend to be "troubled." Then they'll be moralistic and self-righteous.

The press will probably be supine.

Whatever they're talking about will suddenly be The Worst Thing In The World.

This is coming -- don't doubt it for a second. If you're bored, start a pool and bet on which day it'll start.

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EVEN FUNNIER: A real kneeslapper from Politico's Jeanne Cummings:

The filibuster is a particularly thorny issue for Senate Republicans, who railed against the Democrats for trying the tactic against Alito. Their mantra then: That the judicial nominees of President George W. Bush -- or any president -- deserve an up-or-down vote in the chamber.

Those could be tough words to walk away from today.

Oh yeah -- incredibly tough. Why, Republicans would have to engage in hypocrisy! And the press would mostly have to give them a pass on it! That could never happen!