Babbitt, Judge Breyer Said to Lead Clinton Court List

Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt and U.S. Appeals Court Judge Stephen G. Breyer are heading President Clinton’s latest short list of candidates for the U.S. Supreme Court, according to sources close to the search.

Although the sources said that Clinton is still wrestling with the nomination and the situation could change quickly, there were signs that the much-delayed selection may be announced by Wednesday.

The opening was created when Justice Byron R. White announced his retirement at the end of the current court term.

Babbitt, 54, a former Arizona governor and attorney general, would fit Clinton’s expressed desire to pick a nationally prominent political figure. Even though his appeal is primarily to liberals, Babbitt has the advantage that he recently completed a Senate confirmation without opposition from conservatives.

The nomination of Babbitt might also generate favorable press reviews for the President, since Babbitt drew favorable media coverage during his abortive 1988 campaign for the presidency. Earlier this year, Babbitt was briefly considered by Clinton for attorney general.

Breyer, 54, is a centrist and former chief counsel of the Senate Judiciary Committee under Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.). With admirers on both ends of the political spectrum, he has been prominent on Clinton’s list almost since White announced in March that he would retire.

The choice of Breyer would guarantee Clinton little difficulty during Senate confirmation hearings. And it would presumably strengthen the court’s ascendant center.

Richard W. Riley, Clinton’s education secretary, already has turned aside several inquiries about his interest in joining the high court.

Still unclear is how the withdrawal of the nomination of C. Lani Guinier, Clinton’s nominee to be the Administration’s chief civil rights enforcer, might affect the choice. Some analysts speculated that Clinton might be reluctant to pick a white male moderate for the court after Guinier’s botched nomination angered liberals, minorities and women.

Two other appeals court judges, Gilbert S. Merritt and Jon O. Newman, have fallen further down the list, sources said.

Since it may take six weeks for background checks on the nominee, Clinton must move quickly if Senate hearings are to be completed before Aug. 1, when a monthlong congressional recess is scheduled to begin.