Sen. Daniel Akaka expressed reservations about Appeals Court Judge Samuel Alito but both he and Sen. Daniel Inouye said they would approach the nomination hearings with open minds.

Bush announced the conservative Alito as his second choice to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, four days after his first pick, White House counsel Harriet Miers, withdrew her name from consideration.

Akaka noted that O'Connor was often the swing vote in 5-4 decisions and served as a "voice of moderation on the Supreme Court."

"In contrast, Judge Alito's extremely conservative views threaten to lead the court in a new and hostile direction on privacy rights and civil rights," Akaka, D-Hawai'i, said in a statement.

There was no immediate talk of a filibuster that would deny Alito a yes-or-no vote. Senate Majority Leader William Frist had threatened to change the Senate rules so that Democrats could not filibuster judicial nominees, and Democrats had threatened to retaliate with a fight that could snarl Senate business for months.

Last spring, the Senate marched to the brink of a filibuster on judicial nominations until a coalition of 14 moderates — seven Republicans and seven Democrats — defused the situation with a compromise that permitted votes on some Bush judicial appointments.

Inouye is a member of the so-called "Group of 14."

He said he has never met Alito but looks forward to meeting him and learning more about his record.

"I will keep an open mind as the Senate considers Judge Alito's fitness to serve on our nation's highest court, and I hope he will be forthright and cooperative in answering questions from senators, especially during the Senate Judiciary Committee's hearings on his nomination," Inouye, D-Hawai'i, said in a statement. Neither of Hawai'i's senators serve on the committee.

Akaka also said he was looking forward to learning more about Alito and his record.

"In order to get a full picture of Judge Alito's record, it will be important for the White House to provide the necessary records and for Judge Alito to be candid in his hearing," Akaka said.

Democrats have criticized the Bush administration for failing to release documents related to Miers and to newly appointed Chief Justice John Roberts.

Akaka and Inouye were among 22 Democrats who voted against Roberts' confirmation in September, expressing concern about the White House's repeated refusal to release documents from Roberts' work as principal deputy solicitor general under President George H.W. Bush.