Harriet Miers
President Bush nominated White House counsel Harriet Miers, a former Dallas lawyer, to take the place of retiring Supreme Court Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. However, two weeks before the Senate was set to start hearings on her confirmation, Miers withdrew her name in light of mounting criticism about her qualifications.

Miers' nomination had been the subject of intense criticism from both sides of the political aisle since the president announced her selection Oct. 3, 2005. The complaints surrounded her lack of legal credentials and longtime association with President Bush.

Conservatives voiced uncertainty about her political ideologies, and others cited her reluctance to state her opinions on even established court precedents as a cause for concern.

On Capitol Hill, there was meager support among Republicans and it appeared her nomination may not receive the 51 votes needed in the Senate for passage.

In an Oct. 27, 2005 letter giving official notice of her decision, Miers thanked President Bush for his support but added, "I am concerned that the confirmation process presents a burden for the White House and our staff that is not in the best interests of the country."

President Bush, saying he reluctantly would accept Miers' request, added it was apparent that Senate demands for internal memos prepared by Miers as White House counsel would undermine the executive branch.

"It is clear that senators would not be satisfied until they gained access to internal documents concerning advice provided during her tenure at the White House -- disclosures that would undermine a president's ability to receive candid counsel," President Bush said. "Harriet Miers' decision demonstrates her deep respect for this essential aspect of the constitutional separation of powers -- and confirms my deep respect and admiration for her."

Miers was President Bush's personal attorney in Texas, representing the then-governor in at least one case. She came with him to the White House in 2001 as staff secretary, the person who screens the documents that reach his desk, according to the Washington Post.

She was promoted to deputy chief of staff before the president named her counsel after his re-election in November 2004. She replaced Alberto Gonzales, who was elevated to attorney general.

In naming her as counsel in November 2004, President Bush called Miers "a trusted adviser, on whom I have long relied for straightforward advice. ... She is a talented lawyer whose great integrity, legal scholarship and grace have long marked her as one of America's finest lawyers."

Working with a staff of 13 lawyers and in cooperation with the Justice Department, Miers' office provided guidance on issues from the legal parameters for the war on terrorism to presidential speeches, reported the Post.

For the Texas native, her ascent in Washington was just the latest chapter in what President Bush called a "trailblazing career."

Miers was the first woman elected president of the Texas Bar Association and was a partner at the Texas law firm of Locke Liddell & Sapp before coming to Washington.

She was elected as an at-large member of the Dallas City Council in 1989, and chose not to run for reelection when her two-year term expired.

Miers was the first woman hired by Dallas law firm Locke Purnell Boren Laney & Neely. There, she became a top commercial litigator with clients such as Microsoft and Walt Disney Co., reported the Post.

Born and raised in Dallas, Miers graduated from Southern Methodist University with a major in mathematics. She went to law school at SMU, getting her law degree in 1970.

She is unmarried and has no children.

-- Compiled from wire reports and other media sources