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CNN: Washington digs in for Supreme Court fight

Justice Antonin Scalia

By Stephen Collinson, FEB. 15, 2016, CNN

Washington (CNN) - One empty seat on the Supreme Court has changed everything.

Washington is adjusting to a new political reality after the sudden death of Justice Antonin Scalia, which left a turbulent White House race transformed, a lame-duck president back at the center of the political storm and Senate Republican leaders juggling an electoral hand grenade.

After the shock of Scalia's passing and the swift eruption of a bitter partisan feud over his replacement, President Barack Obama and his GOP adversaries will this week begin digging deep for a showdown that will define an already tumultuous political year.

Nightcap: How Scalia's death raises the stakes of 2016's election | Sign up

Obama has upped the ante by making clear that he will defy Republican leaders and presidential candidates who warn he should leave the momentous task of nominating a new justice, who could tip the balance of the Court to liberals, to a new administration.

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