The peevish threat by Republican lawmakers to block the nomination of any replacement for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, who died Saturday in Texas, is the latest, and most telling, example of childish intransigence on the part of the congressional majority. Are we to be faced with another year of gridlock because no even-tempered group of Republicans will step forward to work with the president to present an acceptable, middle-of-the-road candidate for the job?

The suggestion that the nomination should await the election of a new administration, nearly a year away, is ludicrous. This is simply a selfish, self-seeking opportunity to build a conservative majority on the court in the forlorn hope of using the august legal body to further political gains. We’re not electing a candidate here; we’re helping to assure the smooth functioning of the highest court in the land throughout the year ahead.

As a lifelong Republican who switched a few years ago to become a Democrat because I could no longer stomach the belligerent and infantile posture of the GOP majority, I am witnessing yet another example of bullheadedness. Voters should decide whether this is the kind of representation we all deserve.

Bill Snyder

Danvers