Feb. 1 (UPI) -- President Joe Biden will consult with two senior members of the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday afternoon, as he moves forward with his search for a Supreme Court nominee.
Biden is expected to meet with Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, at the White House "to consult with them about the forthcoming Supreme Court vacancy," according to his daily schedule.
Biden is seeking a replacement for Justice Stephen Breyer, 83, who announced last week that he would retire at the end of the current term.
Breyer was appointed by President Bill Clinton and has served on the court since 1994. He is also the court's eldest member.
The president said he will keep a promise made during the 2020 election campaign to appoint a Black woman to the Supreme Court.
"The president has stated and reiterated his commitment to nominating a Black woman to the Supreme Court and certainly stands by that," White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters last Wednesday.
Tuesday's meeting with Durbin and Grassley is meant to explore potential candidates and touch on potential Republican support for the nomination.
Democrats could confirm the nominee on their own in the 50-50 Senate by the slimmest of margins, but Durbin said Monday he envisions having at least some Republican backing.
"I've spoken and texted to several Republican senators that I think may be open to the idea, no promises made, of considering a Biden nominee for the court," Durbin told The Hill.
"What I basically said to them is we're going to make the nominee available and certainly any materials and information you need so that you can draw your own conclusion as to whether she is worthy of your vote," Durbin said.
Tuesday's meeting between the three men could help shore up support for an eventual nominee. Biden has said he hopes to make the pick by the end of February, and Durbin said he hopes the confirmation process unfolds expeditiously.
Durbin told reporters that nominating a sitting judge would be a step in the right direction.
"Historically that's been the standard. Being a sitting judge is important. There's nothing spelled out in the Constitution that requires it. But certainly it makes the argument more credible," he said Monday, NBC reported.
The White House confirmed Friday that U.S. District Court Judge Julianna Michelle Childs, 55, is under consideration. Childs sits on the bench for the District of South Carolina and already has some Republican support.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R- S.C., told CBS Sunday that "I can't think of a better person for President Biden to consider for the Supreme Court than Michelle Childs."
Other names thought to be under consideration include Ketanji Brown Jackson, 51, a U.S. Court of Appeals judge for the D.C. Circuit, and Leondra Kruger, 45, a California Supreme Court justice, reports The Washington Post.
