A: Ridiculous enough to write this:
Should Republicans gain control of the Senate — as they have a fair shot of doing — Mr. McConnell could find himself having to balance the demands of Republicans like Mr. Cruz against those of remaining centrists like Senator Susan Collins of Maine.
A while back, Mitch McConnell sat down with the editors of National Review for a wide-ranging conversation and, while I have not preserved my notes, I am pretty sure that there are two words that did not come out of his mouth that day: Susan Collins. The idea that keeping Susan by-God Collins satisfied is one of the larger problems facing Senator McConnell is surely the funniest thing I have heard this morning, but the day is young. You have to be the New York Times to see the world that way.