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Alto confirmation reflects national division: Bush lauds "fair-minded" new justice

A new era began this month at the Supreme Court as Samuel Alito took a crucial seat on the bench.

The close Senate confirmation vote—58 to 42—reflected the nation’s division over the Court’s future. Of those who voted January 31 against Alito, 40 were Democrats, one was a left-leaning independent, and one—Rhode Island senator Lincoln Chafee—was a moderate Republican.

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