WASHINGTON — "Disappointed." "Missed opportunity." "Unforced error." Those were among the reactions Monday to President Bush's nomination of White House Counsel Harriet E. Miers to the Supreme Court -- not from the usual Democratic critics of the president, but from conservatives.
For many who have waited decades for the chance to decisively alter the balance on the Supreme Court, Bush's decision to bypass nominees with clear, conservative records was inexplicable and fell short of the sort of bold, confrontational choice they had expected.
Some of the groups that were looking forward to building campaigns in support of a conservative choice said that, instead of getting to work, they would have to wait and learn more about Miers.
"What we had wanted was somebody where we could really get out there and work hard and cheer," said Paul M. Weyrich, chairman of the Free Congress Foundation, a Washington think tank. "The Democrats were promising the battle of Armageddon, and we were going to give it to them. Now we have to sit back and watch for the hearings.... If she performs well, then we can get behind her."
"I'm disappointed, depressed and demoralized," William Kristol, editor of the Weekly Standard, wrote in the online edition of the conservative magazine. David Frum, a former Bush speechwriter, called the nomination an "unforced error" in a column on the National Review website.
The White House took immediate steps to try to reassure groups on the right about Bush's choice to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, who is regarded as a swing vote on the high court.
Vice President Dick Cheney, dispatched to appear on Rush Limbaugh's radio show, assured the conservative talk show host that Miers had a "conservative judicial philosophy that you'd be comfortable with."
On Capitol Hill, Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) called on conservative groups "not to prejudge" the nominee. "She does, I believe -- like the president -- believe that judges should not legislate from the bench but rather strictly interpret the law," Cornyn said.
Some conservative leaders said they were untroubled by the choice of Miers. "I'm going to give this president the benefit of the doubt on any nomination until I have compelling evidence to the contrary," said Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.
