President George W Bush today nominated a member of his inner circle, White House counsel Harriet Miers, for a Supreme Court vacancy, choosing a woman with plenty of legal experience but who is not a judge to replace the retiring Sandra Day O'Connor.
Ms Miers, 60, a longtime ally of Mr Bush's going back to his days as Texas governor, would be the third woman ever to serve on the Supreme Court. The others are Ms O'Connor and a current justice, Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Ms O'Connor was a key swing vote on the closely divided Supreme Court and Democrats signaled Miers would undergo intense scrutiny at the US Senate, which must confirm Mr Bush's choice.
In an Oval Office ceremony with Ms Miers at his side, Mr Bush credited her with breaking down barriers to women in the Texas legal profession, becoming the first woman to head her Dallas law firm, the first woman president of the Dallas Bar Association and the first woman elected president of the state bar of Texas.
"I believe that senators of both parties will find that Harriet Miers' talent, experience and judicial philosophy make her a superb choice to safeguard the constitutional liberties and quality of all Americans," Mr Bush said.
He called on the Senate to conduct her confirmation hearings with "the same respect and civility" granted his nominee for US chief justice, John Roberts, who was confirmed last week in time for the opening of the Supreme Court's new term today.
New York Democratic Senator Charles Schumer made clear he would pressure Miers to answer questions about her judicial philosophy.
Democrats were stung when Mr Roberts, during his confirmation hearings, refused to say how he would rule on cases that came before the high court.