Two additional federal appellate judges are among those being considered by the White House to replace late Justice Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court, sources have told CNN.
Judge Sri Srinivasan is one of those being vetted, people familiar with the process told CNN. His friends and former colleagues are being interviewed. Also being vetted is Judge Merrick Garland, sources familiar with the process told CNN.? Associates of Garland have also been interviewed, a source said.
Both men had been frequently mentioned on the list of a possible successor to Scalia following his death last month.
Srinivasan, an Indian-American, is a member of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit — a traditional launching pad for Supreme Court nominees. President Barack Obama first nominated him in 2012, and the Senate confirmed him 97-0 the next year. He was Obama’s principal deputy solicitor general, most notably working in the successful fight against the Defense of Marriage Act.
Garland, confirmed in 1997, has often been mentioned when there is a vacancy. He is the chief judge of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals and was nominated by President Bill Clinton. He previously worked in the Justice Department as well as private practice and clerked for Justice William Brennan.
The White House declined to comment on the individual names said to be under consideration. Obama met Friday afternoon with his legal team to provide further instructions and get more information about candidates. White House officials declined to describe the meeting in detail afterwards.
CNN reported earlier this week that Jane Kelly, who currently serves on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit, is also being looked at as a possible nominee. The FBI has been conducting interviews with individuals associated with Kelly, a source familiar with the process told CNN.
Also being vetted is Ketanji Brown Jackson, a U.S. District Court Judge for the District of Columbia, a source familiar with the process previously confirmed to CNN. The National Law Journal first reported the vetting of Jackson, an African-American female, citing a lawyer who had been interviewed by the FBI. Until December 2014, she also served as vice chairman of the U.S. Sentencing Commission and had previously worked as an attorney in private practice and as a federal public defender.