WASHINGTON (AFP) -- Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano was studiously evasive Sunday about whether she coveted an appointment to the Supreme Court, as Republicans and Democrats sparred over the next justice.

“I've got my hands full with the (swine) flu right now, and I'm going to stick with that (answer),” the former governor and attorney-general of Arizona said on Fox News Sunday.
Napolitano has been floated as a possible name for President Barack Obama to name to the highest US court, after the liberal-leaning Justice David Souter announced Friday that he plans to retire in June.
Supreme Court Justices are named by the president and are appointed for life, effectively impacting U.S. jurisprudence for years, so Souter's announcement stirred a flurry of speculation over his eventual replacement.
Pressed on whether she would accept the job if asked by Obama, Napolitano said: “Listen, I think the president has many, many excellent choices before him and that's his choice to make.”
Obama said he aims to have a successor to Souter by the time the court begins anew in October, “someone with a sharp and independent mind and a record of excellence and integrity.”
The former constitutional law professor is said to prefer a woman for the job. His spokesman Robert Gibbs said Obama was seeking “diversity of experience” in his nominee.
Three other women are in the media frame -- Solicitor General Elena Kagan plus Sonia Sotomayor and Diane Wood, who are both appeals courts judges.
Senator Arlen Specter, whose defection from the Republicans to the Democrats last week could considerably ease the passage of Obama's nominee, said the president should look beyond judges' chambers for his pick.
“We need more people to express a woman's point of view or a minority point of view, Hispanic or African-American -- somebody who has done something more than wear a black robe for most of their lives,” he said on CBS.
Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Patrick Leahy predicted a relatively quick confirmation process, with a vote possible before Congress breaks for its August recess.
“It would be irresponsible if we didn't have somebody in place by the beginning of the October session,” the Democrat told ABC.
“I will set a date for this, but I want to make sure everybody has a chance to see who the president's nominated and have a chance to see their background.” The Republicans need to find a replacement for Specter, who was their most senior member on Leahy's Judiciary Committee tasked with hearings on nominees to the federal bench.
Republican Senator John Ensign railed against left-leaning “activist judges.” “And we need to get back to what the Supreme Court is supposed to be about, and that is interpreting our constitution according to how our founders meant it and according to judicial precedent,” he said on Fox News Sunday.
Senator Orrin Hatch, a former Republican chairman of the Judiciary Committee, said he was worried by Obama's emphasis on finding a nominee who has empathy for ordinary people.
“We all know he's going to pick a more liberal justice. Their side will make sure that it's a pro-abortion justice. I don't think anybody has any illusions about that. The question is, are they qualified?” he told ABC.
“He also said that he's going to select judges on the basis of their personal politics, their personal feelings, their personal preferences.