Oct. 31 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. President George W. Bush, seeking to rebound from a failed Supreme Court nomination, chose conservative appeals court judge Samuel Alito Jr. for the seat and set up what may be a bitter battle with Senate Democrats.

Alito, 55, has a markedly different resume than that of White House Counsel Harriet Miers, whose nomination Bush withdrew last week amid opposition from conservatives. Alito is a former prosecutor and Reagan administration official with 15 years of experience on the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Newark, New Jersey, and a developed record of judicial conservatism.

``He has a deep understanding of the proper roles of judges in our society,'' Bush said at the White House in Washington. ``He understands that judges are to interpret the law, not to impose their preferences or priorities on the people.''

The question for Democrats is whether they will try to block a vote on Alito's nomination. Alito would succeed retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, a pivotal vote on the court on abortion and affirmative action, and potentially shift the court to the right on social issues.

Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada said in a statement that he is ``disappointed'' in the choice. He said he wants to learn ``why those who want to pack the court with judicial activists are so much more enthusiastic about him than they were about Harriet Miers.''

Scalia Similarities

Bush withdrew Miers's nomination Oct. 27 after a month of criticism, primarily from conservatives, about her qualifications and constitutional philosophy.

Miers had never been a judge. By contrast, Alito ``has more prior judicial experience than any Supreme Court nominee in more than 70 years,'' Bush said.

Standing alongside Bush today, Alito said judges have a ``limited role'' in the American constitutional system.

``Federal judges have the duty to interpret the Constitution and the laws faithfully and fairly, to protect the constitutional rights of all Americans and to do these things with care and with restraint,'' he said.

Bush called on the Senate to vote on Alito's nomination by the end of the year. Reid signaled that might be too soon for Democrats, saying Alito ``requires an especially long, hard look.''

`Tough Fight'

Senate Republican Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee said he will consult with leaders of both parties on the timing and predicted a ``tough fight.'' He suggested any Democratic attempt to block a vote would fail.

Progress for America, a conservative group, announced that it will spend $475,000 on advertisements and electronic messages to begin a campaign in support of Alito.

Bush is looking to reverse a political slide that has seen his approval ratings fall to all-time lows. Last week alone was marked by the 2,000th U.S. military death in Iraq, the withdrawal of Miers's nomination and the indictment of White House aide I. Lewis Libby in the CIA leak case.

Alito would be the second Italian-American on the high court, joining Justice Antonin Scalia. The similarities between the two men, both judicial conservatives born in Trenton, New Jersey, have earned Alito the nickname ``Scalito'' among some lawyers. Alito, who is married and has two children, would become the current court's fifth Roman Catholic.

Alito's confirmation would leave the court with only one woman, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Bush was under pressure to name a woman or racial minority, with both first lady Laura Bush and O'Connor, the first female justice, saying they would like to see another woman on the court.

Victory for Conservatives

Conservatives, including those who criticized the Miers selection, hailed the nomination.

``Judge Alito has always been one of our top choices for the Supreme Court,'' said Jan LaRue, chief counsel of the conservative Concerned Women for America in Washington. LaRue had called on the White House to withdraw the Miers nomination.

James Dobson, who founded Focus on the Family, a conservative group based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, said he was ``extremely pleased'' by Alito's selection. Dobson became a key figure in the Miers nomination when he based his initial support for her on information, provided by the White House, ``that I probably shouldn't know.'' He later said Bush aides provided no assurances on how Miers would vote on abortion.

Democrats and liberal interest groups were sharply critical of Alito. Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, called the nomination ``needlessly provocative.'' Leahy in September was one of 22 Democrats to vote to confirm John G. Roberts Jr., Bush's nominee for chief justice.

Divisive Nominee

``It is sad that the president felt he had to pick a nominee likely to divide America instead of choosing a nominee in the mold of Sandra Day O'Connor, who would unify us,'' said Senator Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat.

Frist, the Republican leader, called Alito ``a proven nominee that meets the highest standards of excellence.''

Alito is a graduate of Princeton University and Yale Law School. In the Reagan administration, he served as assistant solicitor general, arguing 12 cases before the Supreme Court, and later as deputy assistant attorney general in the Office of Legal Counsel, providing constitutional advice for the executive branch.

He served as U.S. attorney for New Jersey from 1987 to 1989. George H.W. Bush, the current president's father, appointed Alito to the Philadelphia-based 3rd Circuit in 1990.

High-Profile Disputes

On the 3rd Circuit, Alito played a role in two high-profile abortion disputes. In 1991, he voted to uphold Pennsylvania spousal-notification requirements that were later struck down by the Supreme Court.

In 2000 he joined a three-judge court in voiding a New Jersey prohibition on a late-term procedure that opponents call partial- birth abortion. In that case, Alito said he was bound by a recent Supreme Court ruling.

In 1996, Alito voted in favor of restricting the power of Congress, dissenting when the 3rd Circuit upheld a federal ban on machine gun possession.

He likewise concluded in 2000 that Congress lacked power to subject states to suits by their employees under the Family and Medical Leave Act. The Supreme Court effectively overturned that ruling in 2003.

Holiday Display

In 1999, Alito wrote an opinion upholding a city hall holiday display that contained a nativity scene, a menorah and secular items including plastic Santa Claus and Frosty the Snowman figures.

Alito is a frequent participant in events sponsored by the Federalist Society, a Washington-based group of conservative and libertarian lawyers. He has served as an adjunct professor at Seton Hall University's law school in Newark, teaching constitutional law and a course on terrorism and civil liberties.

Alito was one of the candidates Bush interviewed several months ago, after O'Connor announced her resignation July 1, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said. Bush instead chose Roberts for the seat, later elevating him to the chief justice slot after William H. Rehnquist's death.

Democrats may try to stop the nomination by using a legislative tactic called a filibuster, or unlimited debate. They used that approach to prevent votes on 10 nominees until a bipartisan group of 14 senators crafted an agreement in May to avert a parliamentary showdown.

Under Senate rules, 60 votes -- five more than Republicans possess -- are required to shut off a filibuster. Before the May compromise, Senate Republicans had threatened to change the rules and bar filibusters. That change would require 51 votes to implement.

In the bipartisan agreement, seven Democrats vowed not to filibuster nominees except under ``extraordinary circumstances.'' In return, seven Republicans said they wouldn't back the ``nuclear option.''

To contact the reporter on this story: Greg Stohr in Washington at gstohr@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: October 31, 2005 15:32 EST