Governors, US Senators, and Presidents are not elected by districts. You cannot gerrymander Governors, US Senators, and Presidents.
As for those SCOTUS "political machinations", Harry Reid opened that Pandora's Box when he ran the Senate. Maybe he should have thought about the potential long-term consequences of his action before taking it. Likewise the consequences of Ds' refusal to vote on GHWB's court nominations in 1992.