Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer Will Not Meet With Amy Coney Barrett, Trump's Supreme Court Nominee

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Tuesday he will not meet with Judge Amy Barrett, President Donald Trump's third Supreme Court nominee, one of several Democrats snubbing the nominee.

Schumer tweeted: "Why would I meet with a nominee of such an illegitimate process and one who is determined to get rid of the Affordable Care Act?"

Barrett began her Senate rounds with Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham.

Many Democrats are still undecided about whether to meet with Barrett. Sens. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said they will not meet with the judge, who rose to the federal appellate bench in Chicago just three years ago. However, Sen. Corey Booker, D-N.J., said he does plan to meet her.

"It's my intention to do so. ... I'm going to make it very clear. One of the things I want to ask her is will she recuse herself in terms of any election issues that come before [the court], because if she does not recuse herself, I fear that the court will be further delegitimized," Booker told NBC News.

These optional meetings give senators the chance to question the Supreme Court nominee before high-profile hearings.

Graham has said he will start hearings for Barrett on Oct. 12, with a committee vote expected on Oct. 22. This means a full Senate vote on Barrett's confirmation could come ahead of the Nov. 3 election.

Because nominees only need a simple majority to be confirmed, Republicans can seat Barrett on the court without support from Democrats since they hold a 53-47 seat majority.

Two Republican senators -- Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska -- have said they would vote against seating a Supreme Court justice so close to the election, and polls indicate most Americans would like to see whoever is elected in November fill the vacancy left open by the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg little more than a week ago.