This story has been updated.
The Obama administration is vetting Jane Kelly, an appellate judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eight Circuit, as a possible successor to Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, the New York Times reported Wednesday.
Kelly was unanimously confirmed by the Senate, the Times reported, which could put pressure on Republicans to break their vow not to consider any Obama nominee to the high court.
Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, warmly praised Kelly’s record as a public defender in Iowa ahead of her confirmation in 2013.
Grassley, joined by his Republican colleagues, has said the Senate Judiciary Committee would not hold hearings for any nominee Obama put forward.
