Supreme Court Justice nominee Harriet Miers arrives for church services at the Episcopal Church of the Incarnation in Dallas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Bush Picks Harriet Miers as Nominee for the Supreme Court

Choice is Opposed by the President's Conservative Backers

President George Bush has nominated a close friend to fill one of the most important legal jobs in the country. Bush picked Harriet Miers for a position on the Supreme Court of the United States.

The nomination surprised many people. Some of the people who are Bush's strongest supporters oppose the nomination.

Conservatives are worried that Miers is not conservative enough. Some worry that she will become more liberal after she joins the Supreme Court.

Justices are not supposed to let their personal views affect how they vote. Justices are supposed to look at the facts of a case. They are supposed to decide on how the facts relate to the law. 

Liberals who might have been expected to oppose Miers are quieter. They may believe that Bush could find someone they dislike more than Miers if Miers does not get approved.  

Bush made the announcement October 3. Miers has worked as an aide to Bush since he became president in 2001. She has never been a judge. Her views on many legal issues also are not well known.

Some of the worry is related to the issue of abortion. Bush raised the issue of religion when he announced the nomination. Miers is a member of a church in Dallas, Texas. The church is led by a minister who is against abortion.

Miers' views on abortion questioned

Miers has said she never has made up her mind on how she would vote on abortion. But others said they were told by other people close to Bush that Miers will vote to ban abortion.

The Supreme Court decided in 1973 to allow abortion. The issue has been controversial ever since. Many conservatives have tried to get the court to overturn the decision. They believe that even an embryo has a right to life and that the law should step in to protect that life.

Some on the liberal side have tried to get the court to keep the ruling in place. They believe that women have the right to choose when to have a child and that the government does not have a right to make that choice for a woman.

Neither side has gotten its own way. Several rulings since 1973 have made abortions harder to get.

Miers worked with Bush in Texas

Miers is 60-years-old. She received a law degree in 1970 in Texas. She has worked as an attorney. She also worked with Bush when he was Governor of Texas.

In February, Miers was named counsel to the president. That means she was the top attorney advising the president on legal issues.

The nomination will go to the United States Senate. The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold hearings on the nomination. Miers will be asked about her legal views and her background. She is allowed to refuse to answer. 

Senate vote expected by end of the year

The full Senate is expected to vote before the end of the year. Republicans hold 55 of the 100 seats in the Senate. The nomination will be confirmed by a majority. If all 100 Senators vote, Miers would need 51 votes to be confirmed.

The Supreme Court has nine Justices. Each Justice has one vote when cases are decided. Many of the most important decisions in the history of the court were decided on close votes. A 5-to-4 vote is a close vote.

Miers would be only the third woman to serve on the Supreme Court. She would replace the first woman on the court. That woman is Sandra Day O'Connor.

The only other woman to serve on the court is Ruth Bader Ginsburg. O'Connor will retire if Miers is confirmed. Ginsburg will remain on the court.

Justices can serve for life. The confirmation does not have a time limit. Some Justices retire. Others serve until they die.

Bush's second Supreme Court nominee

Miers is the second person to be nominated to the Court by Bush. It is rare for a president to get the chance to nominate two Justices. Presidents can only nominate when there is a vacancy. Most vacancies occur because Justices retire or die. Most presidents never have a chance to pick one Supreme Court nominee.

Earlier this year, Bush nominated John Roberts. He was confirmed as Chief Justice in late September. The Chief Justice is the head of the nine Justices.

The Miers nomination is expected to be more controversial than the Roberts nomination. Part of the reason is that Roberts was better known. He had been a federal judge for two years. He also had a long legal record that was easier to study.