The US Senate today confirmed Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court.
In doing so, it backed a second conservative nominated by President Bush in his effort to move the nation's highest court to the right.
The vote to replace the more moderate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor with Mr Alito, a federal appeals judge since 1990, came four months after the Senate approved Bush's first Supreme Court nominee, John Roberts, as US chief justice.
Mr Alito is expected to align himself with the court's solidly conservative bloc and could affect the outcome of votes on key social issues such as abortion and civil rights.