WASHINGTON — President Bush's nomination of White House counsel Harriet Miers yesterday appeared designed primarily to avoid a major fight in the Senate, and skeptics on the left and right said it was made out of a position of political weakness, not strength.

Bush's decision confounded both right and left, as perhaps the president's advisers had hoped.

Bush campaigned for re-election by telling conservatives he wanted to reshape the federal judiciary. But in selecting a successor to Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, the pivotal swing vote on many of the most important decisions by the court in recent years, the White House appeared to be seeking a smooth confirmation process, bypassing candidates with more established conservative credentials at a time when Bush is beset with political problems ranging from Iraq to Hurricane Katrina.

In nominating someone who caused dismay among conservative activists but who provoked little strong opposition among Democrats — and brought words of praise from Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. — the White House may have calculated that Bush can more easily afford some early heat from the right than a titanic struggle with Democrats that could tie up the Senate and leave him in an even weaker position.

Miers, who as White House counsel was part of the team that vetted potential court nominees, was not publicly mentioned as a potential candidate until last week, and most speculation had centered on younger contenders, as well as the prospect that Bush would want to name the first Hispanic American to the Supreme Court. But, in a signature of his management style, Bush turned to an adviser in whom he felt personal trust.

Through a spokesman, Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., said he would like to have Miers' confirmation hearings start in time for a vote on the nomination before the Senate leaves for its Thanksgiving recess. Senate Democrats, however, were calling for a thorough examination of her views and for a release of her records as White House counsel — a request sure to cause a confrontation with the White House.

"The record we have so far is simply insufficient to assess the qualifications of this nominee," said Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass.

Bush said Miers would bring a distinctive perspective to the high court while strictly interpreting the Constitution and not legislating from the bench.

"In selecting a nominee, I've sought to find an American of grace, judgment and unwavering devotion to the Constitution and laws of our country. Harriet Miers is just such a person," Bush said. "I've known Harriet for more than a decade. I know her heart, I know her character."

Based on advance soundings with Reid and conservative leader James Dobson, the White House calculated Miers would draw broad support. But yesterday's response to the nominee left this open to doubt.

"It's hard to explain why Harriet Miers is the right pick unless you're trying to avoid a fight about someone who has expressed a conservative constitutional philosophy," said William Kristol, editor of the conservative Weekly Standard. "Even if she does well in the hearing and turns out to be a pretty good judge, I still think it's demoralizing for the president to pass over a host of publicly identified conservative constitutionalists."

Kristol was one of a number of conservatives who posted their dismay on Web sites and in e-mails shortly after Bush announced his pick. Not long after, Vice President Dick Cheney was on the air with conservative radio talk-show hosts Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity defending the choice.

"We've never backed off from a fight with this Congress or any other Congress," Cheney told Limbaugh. The vice president also sought to reassure his conservative hosts that they will find Miers more than ideologically acceptable, calling her "rock-solid, from a philosophical point of view."

Some of Bush's usual allies on the right questioned whether the 60-year-old former corporate lawyer possessed the distinguished qualifications and conservative credentials they are looking for in a court nominee.

"It could well be that she is in the tradition of Clarence Thomas or Antonin Scalia, as the president has promised," said Jan LaRue, chief counsel of Concerned Women for America. "The problem is that those of us who were looking for some tangible evidence of that have none."

Advocates on the left and their allies in the Senate also urged caution, pronouncing Miers a mystery.

"We know next to nothing about the legal philosophy of the person President Bush has selected to replace Justice O'Connor casting the deciding votes on the most difficult issues confronting our nation," said Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass.

White House officials emphasized the praise Miers had previously won from Democrats.

As part of a bipartisan delegation of Senate leaders at the White House on Sept. 21, Reid told Bush that Miers "is worthy of consideration," according to aides of people at the meeting, and the senator spoke warmly of her yesterday. Some Senate Democrats privately expressed dismay that Reid had given the White House cover for a nominee they expect to oppose.

"In some ways, it's the highest form of political camouflage," said Ross Baker, a political-science professor at Rutgers University. "It seems to maximize the likelihood of confirmation and minimize the likelihood of a colossal ideological struggle that results in a filibuster."

Bush described Miers, who if confirmed would be the third woman to sit on the Supreme Court, as a legal pioneer who repeatedly overcame gender barriers to reach the highest levels of her profession.

In a short statement after Bush announced her nomination and before she made her first round of courtesy calls on Senate leaders, Miers indicated she has a modest view of the duty of justices.

"It is the responsibility of every generation to be true to the Founders' vision of the proper role of the courts in our society," she said. "If confirmed, I recognize that I will have a tremendous responsibility to keep our judicial system strong and to help ensure that the courts meet their obligations to strictly apply the laws and the Constitution."

Bush chose Miers after seriously considering as many as 15 candidates. He offered her the job Sunday during dinner in the White House with first lady Laura Bush.

Compiled from reports by Washington Post staff writers Michael A. Fletcher, Dan Balz and David Broder.