Rival sides line up for and against Judge Alito

Opposition Democrats geared up for a fight over conservative Judge Samuel Alito, President George W. Bush's choice to fill a Supreme Court vacancy.

Ruling Republicans saw the pick as a chance to bring the party together after the traumatic withdrawal on Thursday of White House counsel Harriet Miers, Bush's last choice, whose weak conservative credentials caused a Republican revolt.

Democrats, however, were riled by Alito's nomination.

"It is sad that the president felt he had to pick a nominee likely to divide Americans instead of choosing a nominee in the mold of Sandra Day O'Connor, who would unify us," said Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer.

Bush's move to nominate Alito to replace O'Connor, who is retiring, appeared to end weeks of right-wing rebellion.

Unlike Miers, Alito has a long record of conservative decisions, including some votes in abortion cases, which are seen as the all-important dividing line between conservatives and liberals.

Alito has also built up a substantive knowledge of U.S. constitutional law as a federal appeals court judge for the past 15 years.

"President Bush has hit a home run with this nomination," said Roberta Combs, president of the Christian Coalition, an activist group.

Republican Representative Tom Tancredo said: "Today, faithful conservatives are yelling 'Yes!'"

‘Careful scrutiny':

Democrats complained however that the president had ignored their call to pick a politically middle-of-the-road candidate.

"This controversial nominee, who would make the court less diverse and far more conservative, will get very careful scrutiny from the Senate and from the American people," Schumer said.

Alito must be confirmed in the 100-seat Senate, where Republicans hold a decisive 55 to 45 seat edge. Outnumbered Democrats have sufficient strength, however, to hold up the legislative confirmation machinery.

Arlen Specter, the Republican chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which vets the nomination, said that unlike Miers, who left a skimpy judicial trail, Alito has been involved in some 3,500 cases, including about 300 for which he has written opinions.

"We have a very good idea as to his approach to jurisprudence," Specter told a press conference.

The conservative Wall Street Journal called the upcoming Senate hearings on Alito, "a fight worth having," and welcomed the judge's "regard for free market and recognition of the legal and regulatory challenges facing business."

Liberal interest groups vowed to oppose the nomination.

"President Bush put the demands of his far-right political base above Americans constitutional rights and legal protections by nominating federal appeals court Judge Samuel Alito," said Ralph Neas, president of People for the American Way.

"He has chosen to divide Americans with a nominee guaranteed to cause a bitter fight," Neas added in a statement, vowing to mobilize the group's 750,000 members in a national effort to defeat Alito.

Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy called Alito an "extreme" pick, adding that while the judge was clearly intelligent and experienced, he was not "mainstream" enough for the U.S. high court.

First Lady disappointed:

Others likely to be disappointed by Bush's choice include legions of Americans -- including First Lady Laura Bush -- who have lobbied for another woman to take O'Connor's place.

"This appointment ignores the values of diverse background and perspectives on the Supreme Court," Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid said.

"For the third time he has declined to make history by nominating the first Hispanic to the court," said Reid. Latinos form the biggest U.S. minority.

Bush's decision to choose yet another white, male, graduate of prestigious "Ivy League" schools "would leave the Supreme Court looking less like America and more like an old boys' club," Reid said.

The New York Times called Alito's nomination "another lost opportunity" for a more "expansive presidency," comparing it to Bush's failure after September 11 to "build a new, inclusive world order of civilized nations aligned against terrorism."

"With more than three years to go in his term," said the Times, "the bottom line is becoming inescapable. Mr. Bush does not want to change, and perhaps is not capable of changing."

The Washington Post said it would wait for the confirmation process before venturing an opinion on Alito, although a cursory view of his work showed him to be "not a bomb-thrower but rather a judge who is careful."