The Supreme Court

Kagan isn't expected to alter the ideological balance of the court, where Stevens was considered a leader of the liberals.

Some Republicans fear that she might become a judicial activist. Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, said Kagan had "less real legal experience of any nominee in at least 50 years."

He said her decision to bar military recruiters from Harvard Law School's career services office was in violation of the law -- a legal conclusion disputed by the White House.

Hurdles for Kagan in her confirmation process could include the fact that she has never been a judge and her push to oust military recruiters from the Harvard Law School campus when she was dean.

Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, the leading Judiciary Committee Republican says she is "out of the mainstream" of legal thinking and has a very activist judicial profile.

Sessions also said on CBS's "The Early Show" that he thought the native New York appeals court judge deserves a fair hearing. He quickly added that Republicans on the Judiciary panel won't hesitate to question her closely on her judicial philosophy.

"When I asked if an unborn child has any rights whatsoever, I was surprised that she said she had never thought about it," he said.

According to the Washington Times, Sotomayor was a member of the board of directors of a Hispanic group, and a part-time head of its litigation committee, that filed several legal briefs urging support for unlimited abortions.

Administration officials say Sotomayor would bring more judicial experience to the Supreme Court than any justice confirmed in the past 70 years.

She was confirmed an appeals judge more than a decade ago by the Senate. At that time she said, "I don't believe we should bend the Constitution under any circumstance. It says what it says. We should do honor to it."

Democrats fear Mr Alito could swing the court too far to the right and have threatened to block his nomination.

If approved, Alito — considered a conservative federal judge — will replace O'Connor, a moderate who has been considered a decisive swing vote in a host of affirmative action, abortion, campaign finance, discrimination and death penalty cases.

Miers informed the president last night of her decision, submitting a letter that said she was concerned the confirmation process "would create a burden for the White House and our staff that is not in the best interest of the country."

Harriet Miers is an evangelical Christian, that she is from a very conservative church, which is almost universally pro-life, that she had taken on the American Bar Association on the issue of abortion and fought for a policy that would not be supportive of abortion, that she had been a member of the Texas Right to Life.

Earlier in the day, the Senate voted 78-22 in favor of sending Roberts to be the top judge of the land.

“It’s settled as a precedent of the court, entitled to respect under principles of stare decisis,” the concept that long-settled decisions should be given extra weight, Roberts told the Senate Judiciary Committee.

He's a man of integrity and fairness and throughout his life he's inspired the respect and loyalty of others... John Roberts built a record of excellence and achievement and reputation for goodwill and decency toward others in his extraordinary career.

Rehnquist was appointed to the Supreme Court as an associate justice in 1971 by President Nixon and took his seat on Jan. 7, 1972. He was elevated to chief justice by President Reagan in 1986.

Law professor Jonathan Turley has reported in The Los Angeles Times that during a meeting with Roberts on Capitol Hill, Senator Dick Durbin, Democrat of Illinois, asked him about potential conflicts between his Catholic beliefs and the law when it came to abortion or the death penalty.

Roberts worked in the Reagan White House counsel's office from 1982-1986. He also was principal deputy solicitor general, a political appointment in the administration of the first President Bush.

I'll pick people who one, can do the job; people who are honest, people who are bright; and people who will strictly interpret the Constitution and not use the bench to legislate from.

A bruising Senate confirmation struggle loomed as President Bush pledged to name a successor quickly.

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