Quote: "so they abstain and swing the vote to the Dims : 49 no /46 yes / 4 abstain ? (or something like that?"
There are 55 Republicans, 44 dems and 1 dumbass. Thus it would be 51 yes, 45 no, 4 idiots. But, some dems have agreed to vote for Alito. Ergo the yes votes (counting the abstensions) are 53, I think.
54 Yes votes so far.
51 GOP + Nelson(Nebraska), Johnson(Don't Daschle Me), Byrd(KKK/I soiled myself) = 54 Votes
You're about 'right on'. I think the only question is how many of the non-committed RINO's and DIMS will vote for Alito.