Ted Kennedy told fellow Democrat Charles Schumer to "take the lead” in the grilling of Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito before the Senate Judiciary Committee. And the congressman from New York could parlay his prominent position on the committee into what Washington insiders say is his ultimate goal: The Senate Democratic leadership position. On the Thursday before the confirmation hearings began, Schumer gave a speech outlining the Democrats’ plan for questioning Alito. A few hours earlier, Kennedy had done the same. But Kennedy’s briefing "had not gone well,” a report in New York Magazine reveals. "Kennedy, looking tired and haggard,...