We all know that the strongest hand is one party holding the White House, House of Representatives and Senate. What is the next strongest hand and why…

White House & Senate

White House & House of Representatives

House of Representatives & Senate

White House and Senate.

Yes it's best to have all three but if choosing between the Senate and the House the Senate wins. The Senate can block nominations and SCOTUS is the prize. Controlling Congress but not the presidency means it's difficult to get anything done. A veto proof majority would allow congress to dictate policy over the president but is rare.

There is no next strongest hand. Each of the three has its own set of functions, and its own set of spheres where it can take the initiative - or block initiatives by refusing to act.

The only way there's anything like a next strongest hand is if one has the Presidency, and there is a very narrow and/or unstable majority in the branch of Congress that one does not actually control.

No matter how you slice it, "shoot for the moon" is the only viable electoral strategy - unless you want to sit around and try to convince yourself that confirming judges is better than controlling tax policy or visa versa. You're not playing poker; you're picking a lottery ticket down at the local convenience store.

I think it depends on the time.

For example, right now, I’d prefer the Whitehouse and the senate. If a Supreme Court justice retires or passes away, appointing a new justice is huge. Given the ages of some of the justices, that could happen in the next two years.