Robert Gibbs said today that the Obama administration has been making preparations for a Supreme Court choice since before inauguration day, but at this point said he is unaware of whether there's an "A, B or C list" for the high court.

"The transition began identifying a long time ago candidates for what we assumed might be a pick for the Supreme Court," he said today. "Right now there's a collection underway for a pool of very qualified candidates."

At the daily press briefing, Gibbs was asked an array of questions from reporters looking for clues about what direction the president might go in making his pick. Would it be a woman or minority? Will he choose a younger individual who'd likely have a longer tenure? And how quickly can he expect to get a candidate confirmed?

On the latter point, Gibbs acknowledged that the process will need to be well under way before the Congress heads out for summer recess. In addition, given the other items on the legislative agenda, the administration knows September is "going to be a busy time." So to meet the goal of having a new justice by the Supreme Court's new term in October, "obviously this process has to be a decent ways down the field," he said.

Obama has already spoken today with Sens. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Arlen Specter (D-Pa.), more senior members of the Judiciary Committee. Gibbs repeated that the president is going to choose someone "who respects precedent, tradition and rule of law," and also someone who "understands that decisions have to be made using common sense and understanding people's every day lives."

"I'm sure he will look at candidates with diversity in their background," he said, but that whether the person is a "he or a she," that will be his primary mindset.