A Democratic senator has come up with a proposition that could de-escalate a potential scorched-earth war between Democrats and Republicans over the Supreme Court seat of the late Justice Antonin Scalia and revive the failed nomination of Merrick Garland, President Barack Obama's choice to fill the vacancy.

In a gambit that would make a baseball general manager proud, Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M., has reportedly suggested that President Donald Trump meet privately with the justices who are ready to retire – a move that would clear the way for Garland and Neil Gorsuch, Trump's choice for the Scalia seat, to join the court at the same time.

Udall presented the plan Monday morning to Gorsuch, the judge's team of White House aides and former Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., who has escorted Gorsuch in his courtesy calls on senators who will soon vote on his confirmation.

According to Udall's proposal, CNN reported , all that's needed is for one justice to step down: Republicans would then vote to confirm Garland, a Washington, D.C., appellate judge whose nomination the GOP torpedoed as part of a plan to keep the seat open for Trump to fill.

Then, Democrats lining up to torpedo Gorsuch's nomination as payback would stand down, clearing the way for the Colorado appellate judge to replace the retiring justice.

The plan is, by most accounts, a longshot at best – CNN said Udall told reporters he got no response or comment from Gorsuch's team in the room, but the idea is circulating among some senators. Udall said the plan could be a big win for Trump and satisfy his itch for deal-making.

"It's a good chance for Trump to try to unite the country," Udall said. "He's got a book that's widely acclaimed in terms of 'The Art of the Deal.' This is a deal that makes sense for the country… It's a deal that heals the real deep wounds we've had in this election."

Currently, Democrats and Republicans are at a standoff over the vacancy that occurred when Scalia, a firebrand conservative, died last February on a luxury hunting trip.

Democrats have vowed to block a nominee outside of the judicial mainstream, and Gorsuch, 49, is described as an arch conservative in the mold of Scalia. But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky has the power to strip Democrats of their right to filibuster -- the so-called "nuclear option" that would eliminate the "supermajority" requirement of 60 votes for confirmation. That would allow a Supreme Court justice to be confirmed with a 51-vote majority.

Since they hold a 52-48 edge in the Senate, that would mean Republicans could confirm Gorsuch on a straight party-line vote. But Sen. Susan Collins, a moderate Republican from Maine, has said she is not a proponent of changing the rules of the Senate, and McConnell would likely need her support for the move.