In both his press conference last week and an interview with Politico, [Andy] Beshear has now repeatedly declined to commit to following the law. Instead it seems clear he is inclined to appoint a Democrat instead, counting on Washington Democrats to seat his selection in a closely divided Senate, then fight the matter in the courts.

Flip the party allegiance of the various players — and this posture would be a top story on MSNBC, the latest example of Republican intransigence and defiance of law and order. But because Beshear is a Democrat, everything here is perfectly kosher. And it’s one more reason McConnell is likely to hang on in Washington, hoping to make it to next November — even if he freezes up along the way.

[Aside from the first moments after the latest McConnell freeze-up, no one really advocated for McConnell to resign his Senate seat. A number of people wanted him to resign his leadership role so that others, probably John Cornyn but perhaps John Thune, could pursue it with more vigor. And there’s still a good case for that, although McConnell himself isn’t budging. — Ed]